The Ultimate Shuck N' Jive
by ackeberlynn
Summary: Is it the worst tragedy Hazzard has ever seen? Or the biggest shuck n' jive anyone has ever pulled? Just how far will the boys go to do the right thing? And what will the consequences be? COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Boy, it's been awhile. I've been reading stories all along, but I haven't always had time to review, and certainly very little time to write. Now I'm back, trying desperately to feed the muse. I haven't watched a Dukes episode in nearly 3 weeks, and though I'm not quite suffering withdrawal (lol), I only hope that my characterization doesn't get too off base. Fair warning, the ending of this story was never set, so I will rely on reviews and suggestions a lot when it comes to plot. My apologies if there are mistakes or if the story isn't quite up to par. It takes awhile to get back on track with something like this. Anyway, I also am sending out a **tissue warning** for this first chapter. 'Nuff said.

Here it goes.

Chapter 1: In the Stillness of the Morning

Cooter Davenport whistled to himself as he bumped along Possum Creek Road. It was early morning, way too early to be doing anything but snoring in bed, in Cooter's opinion. But he had bills to pay, and towing beaten up vehicles was a big part of Cooter's vocation. He had gotten a call around 6 AM from a young fella from town who'd driven his parent's Sedan into a muddy ditch sometime during the night. Unfortunately for the boy, Cooter hadn't been born yesterday, and knew that the only reason the boy was so desperate to get the car out of the ditch so soon was because he hadn't had permission to use it in the first place. Cooter grilled him a bit, making the boy sweat, and eventually got the whole story out over the phone. There had been a dance out at the old Erickson farm last night, and since the boy's parents were out visiting a sick relative up in Atlanta, he decided to "borrow" the car to take out his girlfriend. However, on the way home a tire blew out, causing the Sedan to skid into a ditch, where it promptly got stuck in the mud left over from a week's worth of rain. His parents were due back by early afternoon, and the boy claimed he'd do anything, _anything_, if Cooter would help him out. Cooter, having once been quite a cain-raiser himself, promised to have the car back in prime condition and in the boy's driveway by ten…for a certain, nominal fee, of course. Smiling, he'd hung up the phone, satisfied that the boy had learned his lesson.

"Crime pays", Cooter'd said to himself, having charged the boy three times the regular towing rate. So, here he was, bouncing down a road of potholes, brown water from the puddles splashing along side of the truck.

It was a beautiful April morning, the first time the sun had been out in days, and Cooter was in a good mood, despite the annoyance of having a tow job so early. He contently whistled "Battle Hymn of the Republic" as the birds awoke with the sun and began their own songs. He saw what looked like a vehicle along the side of the road up ahead, and figured he'd found the Sedan. Slowing, he stopped whistling and squinted hard through the truck's dirty windshield. He didn't remember the boy telling him that the car had been flipped onto its hood.

As he came to stop in the middle of the road, he realized that he wasn't quite at the spot where the boy had claimed the car to be. Shrugging, he exited the cab of the truck and began ambling toward the wreck. He only had to take a few steps toward it before he realized that it was not a Sedan at all. He picked up the pace a bit, a small knot growing in his stomach.

At twenty feet away, Cooter stopped dead in his tracks. He'd seen many accidents in his time. Being a mechanic, he'd seen everything from fender-benders to horrible and fiery wrecks. He'd seen crunched metal, bent trees, and shattered glass. He'd seen blood, tears, and busted bones. At his age, Cooter thought he'd seen it all. But years of experience had ever prepared him for anything like this.

The car was almost unrecognizable, partly because it was flipped on its hood, and partly because it was covered with mud. The whole front end and left side of the thing was crushed, the metal painfully twisted around a large tree. Glass shards lay scattered everywhere. Everything in Cooter's experience told him that this was a bad accident.

It was the license plate that first caught his eye—he knew that license plate. Then the tires—tires he'd replaced just a week before. Then, he noticed little flecks of orange paint underneath the darkened mud. Finally, he stopped and stared at the sight before him as a whole. It was the General Lee, crashed and damaged like Cooter had seen only a few times before. At first this did not bother him much; he just wondered why the Duke boys hadn't called him and told him about the accident. They knew he'd come running, no matter what time of day. Anything for the General Lee. And anything for his buds. His wonder lasted only a moment, however, before he suddenly realized why the Duke boys hadn't called him. It was because the Duke boys were still inside.

All Cooter caught was a glimpse of a yellow shirt, and he was jolted out of his daze and ran over to the wrecked vehicle, ignoring his boots sinking in the ankle-deep mud.

"Bo? Luke?" He called in a frantic voice as he bent down to see inside the misshaped driver side window. To his utter shock and horror, both boys lay inside the wreck, limbs thrown about haphazardly. And they were still as stones.

"Bo?" Cooter called to the boy closest to him, voice shaking with fear. The blonde didn't even twitch. Trembling, Cooter reached his hand inside the car and placed two fingers against Bo's neck.

Nothing.

"Luke!" Cooter shouted to the other cousin who lay just as still on the passenger side. Quickly, he made his way around to that side of the car and knelt to check on the older Duke boy. He pulled away slowly, realizing with terror that neither boy had a pulse.

"Lord, help me," he prayed, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Maybe he was wrong. After all, he was no doctor, what did he know about checking a pulse? But pulse or no pulse, Cooter realized that both boys needed medical attention, and soon.

Bolting over to the tow truck, he yanked the CB out of its holder and held it to his stuttering lips.

"B-breaker, breaker, this here's Crazy 'C'! Anybody out there got their ears on? This here's an emergency!" He called twice more, frustrated when he got no response.

Finally, the CB crackled with static.

"Hey Cooter, this here's your sheriff speaking, Roscoe P. Coltrane. Uh, what seems to be the trouble? Over."

"I done told ya what the problem is, Roscoe! There's a bad accident out here on Possum Creek Road, an' I'm gonna need an ambulance out here quick!"

Roscoe, who'd been dozing in his patrol car within view of one of his favorite speed traps, suddenly became alert with the news.

"Uh, that's a ten-four, Cooter. I'll call the ambulance and be out there faster'n you can make spit…ghew, ghew". Turning to his beloved hound, Flash, he smiled and started the car.

"Okay Flash, daddy's off to do some real police work now! Oh, I love it, I love it!" Little did he know that the crash would turn out to be more devastating than anyone had ever imagined.

Back at the crash site, Cooter paced back and forth beside the tow truck as he waited for help to arrive. Right after he'd talked to Roscoe on the CB, he'd called to Enos and told him to tell Jesse and Daisy that the boys had had an accident out on Possum Creek Road. It was all the information he dared to give.

He couldn't go back over to the wreck…couldn't handle it if Bo and Luke were really…no, he wouldn't think that way. Those boys had more lives than _5_ cats.

He paused mid-pace, stopping to listen for sirens in the distance. He strained his ears but heard nothing but the light rustling of leaves in the trees high above. At that moment he realized how eerily still the morning had become. Not even the birds were chirping anymore. Cooter shivered, chills running up and down his spine.

"Come on, Roscoe, where are ya?" He muttered impatiently.

It seemed like it took hours, but it was really only about 20 minutes later when the ambulances finally came, escorted by Roscoe and Enos in their respective patrol cars.

"They're down here!" Cooter yelled, pointing the car in the ditch. As the paramedics rushed down to assess the situation, Cooter stepped aside to give them room.

"Cooter!" Enos called, running to where the mechanic stood. "I called Jesse an' Daisy. They're on their way."

Cooter couldn't help but cringe. They had no idea how bad it really was.

"How bad is it, Cooter?" was Enos' next question.

"I…I don't know, Enos…." the mechanic said, avoiding the deputy's searching gaze.

Roscoe wandered over next to them, concern evident in his eyes.

"I didn't know it was the Duke boys," he said dazedly. Minutes passed as they watched the paramedics gently pull the two boys' limp bodies from the wreck.

Tears filled Enos' eyes as they began doing CPR, and he had to look away. Roscoe, too, muttered something about "directing traffic" and went to stand on the road, even though no one had seen a car pass since they'd arrived on scene. Cooter, however, could not look away. His breath caught in his throat he watched the medics feverish work on his buddies, his brothers, his best friends. More minutes passed.

Finally, the medics removed the equipment from the boys' bodies and slowly stood up. The one who'd been working on Luke began walking over to the ambulance, head down.

"Hey, where's he goin'! What's goin' on!" Cooter demanded the other medic, grabbing him roughly by the arm.

"I'm sorry mister, but we can't do anything else but call the coroner."

The words hit Cooter like a cinder block.

"W-what are you sayin'?"

"I'm saying that they're gone," the medic answered patiently, pointing to where Bo and Luke lay. "There's nothing more we can do here."

As if on cue, Jesse and Daisy pulled up in the pickup. Cooter sent a pleading glance toward Enos, begging for help with his eyes.

Nodding with understanding, tears fresh in his own eyes, Enos quickly climbed back up to the road.

"Oh, Enos! What happened? Where are Bo and Luke?" She asked, headed for the ambulance.

"Just hold on a minute honey…I gotta talk to ya a minute," Enos said, grabbing her gently around the waist. She almost pushed past him until she saw the look on his face.

"Enos? What's goin' on?" She asked, fear gripping her heart.

Jesse, who'd been a bit slower getting out of the pickup, walked up to where Cooter stood on the road, hands shoved deep in pockets, head bowed.

"Alright, Cooter, what's happened? Where's my boys?" He demanded.

Cooter looked up slowly, tears streaking down his dirty cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Jesse," he choked, barely able to get the words past his teeth. Unfazed, the old man pushed past him…until he saw the two black bags lying on the ground in the ditch. He stopped for a moment, eyes growing big, then lumbered down to the wreck.

He grabbed one of the medics, who was placing his instruments back in his bag.

"Hey, what's goin' on here? Where're my nephews?"

Two things happened simultaneously. One, Daisy let out an ear piercing scream that echoed off the mountains—Enos had just explained to her what had happened. And, at that same moment, the medic pointed down to the ground next to him—and Jesse saw that Bo and Luke were inside those black bags, very still and very pale.

"Daisy, wait!" Enos yelled as she broke free from his grasp and began stumbling down to the ditch. Luckily, Cooter caught her before she could see the boys.

"No! Let me go, Cooter! Let me go!" Her voice broke, and she folded into him, shaking with uncontrollable sobs. Cooter wept as well, unable to stop the salty water from streaming down his face.

"I know, sweetheart, I know…shhhh, baby, I know," he kept repeating over and over, stroking her hair as he rocked her back and forth.

Enos, realizing his duty as an officer of the law, walked up to Jesse and tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Uncle Jesse? Is…is there anythin' ya need?" The old man shook his head, then scared everyone by slowly sinking to his knees. Enos kept a strong hand on his shoulder, just in case, and motioned over one of the medics, who'd been watching the scene, not knowing what to do.

"Sir? Can you hear me, sir?" He said, looking into Jesse's eyes. Just then Daisy came over, dropping down beside him, burying her face in his overalls. That seemed to wake him from his shock.

"Y-yeah. I hear ya."

"Listen, sir, the coroner's here. We're gonna need some space here." Silently Jesse stood and backed away, still holding Daisy in his arms. Cooter and Enos stood on either side, eyes moist and noses red.

The coroner, an old man with a grim frown and a gray suit, knelt down next to each boy and did his examination. After writing on his clipboard a few minutes later, he turned to the medics.

"Time of death, 7:28AM."

"Oh, no…" Daisy cried, legs giving way beneath her. Enos caught her as she nearly fainted. Cooter placed on hand on Jesse shoulder, surprised when the old man reached up and placed his own calloused hand over it. Roscoe walked over then, himself misty-eyed, and stood next to Jesse.

"Uh…if there's anythin' I can do…." He couldn't finish. Jesse only nodded.

They watched in silent misery as the bags were zipped up over each boy's head. The medics loaded them into the back of the ambulance and prepared to leave. Just then, the coroner walked over to Jesse.

"You were related?" he asked, as if it wasn't obvious. Jesse nodded.

"How were you related to the deceased?" he asked, reading off his clipboard.

"They…were…my nephews…my boys," the old man replied, barely above a whisper.

"And you positively identified them?" The man continued, oblivious to grief around him.

"The man just said they was his nephews, what more do ya want?" Cooter snapped angrily.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I'm only doing my job," answered the coroner in an irritated tone.

"Go do it someplace else," Cooter retorted.

"I just need their names and ages," the man answered in the same tone.

"Uh, Mr. Farely, I can give ya all that information over here," Roscoe said, saving them all the grief. As the two men walked away, Jesse, Daisy, Cooter, and Enos, followed the ambulance up to the road and watched as it slowly drove away. And with it, a part of each of their hearts.

"Uncle Jesse, can I give y'all a ride home?" Enos asked quietly as the big white bus disappeared. "Cooter here can tow the pickup…right Cooter?" The mechanic nodded.

Enos led them over to his patrol car, keeping careful hold on Daisy, who was still sobbing. Numbly, the remaining members of the Duke family climbed inside of the car, holding onto each other tightly as the Enos shut the door behind them. He turned to Cooter.

"You gonna be okay, Cooter?" He asked.

"No I ain't, Enos," the mechanic answered softly. "Ain't nothin' ever gonna be okay again."

**Balladeer:** _Now I don't know 'bout y'all, but this here story raises more questions than it answers. I wouldn't be dressin' in black just yet._

TBC

Hey, feed the muse, and you just might find out what happens faster!


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** Okay, first of all, I just want to say that my writing style has a lot of "stories within stories". I like this because I think that writing more background behind the character's experiences and feelings really adds to the story, and helps the reader picture it

_However_, if this is confusing for any of you, _please let me know_ so I can try to improve. Also, I apologize for any mistakes in grammar or plot. For the record, the cars I mentioned are real, and the Dodge Viper is my dream car. The "date scene" I tell about in here is a little far-fetched in my book, but it just came with the muse so I wrote it.

As for the first chapter…thank you all so much for the reviews! I was pleased to see the effect it had, and I hope y'all will stick with me.

'Nuff said.

Chapter 2: Premonitions before the Storm

Three days before the loss of Hazzard County's beloved duo, the boys were at the Boars Nest with Cooter, relaxing and escaping from the relentless rain.

"The shocks are fine, Luke, you just complain too much," Bo declared loudly.

He and Luke had been having a mild "discussion" for the past 15 minutes about whether or not the shocks needed replaced in the General Lee. Cooter, sensing the danger of the inevitable argument that came whenever the cousins disagreed, chose to stay out of this one.

"Bo," Luke began, setting down his glass to look his younger cousin in the eye. "If we come down from a jump in the General, and I feel the bones in my back crunching together when we hit the ground, it means it's time to replace the shocks."

"Luke, you know how much them shocks is gonna cost. We can't afford it."

"Well, we might be able to if you didn't waste all your money on them cheap dates like ya have," Luke sneered.

The bad thing about being cousins, and being so close, was that during an argument they each knew just what buttons to push to get the other angry. And Bo and Luke had it down to an art.

"Cheap dates!" Bo cried, offended. "Well, let me tell you 'bout bein' cheap, cousin. 'Cheap' is that city girl you fell all over when we was up in Atlanta last year."

Cooter's mouth dropped open. Everyone who knew Luke knew that 'Vienna, the city girl' was a touchy subject.

Last spring, the boys had saved up their money so they could attend the annual 'Hotlanta' "Four Wheels and Motor" car show. It had been one of the most memorable experiences of their lives. Cars of every make, model, and color were parked neatly in field of perfectly manicured grass just off the highway. There were antique cars—even a Model T Ford, looking like it'd just come off the assembly line. Foreign cars—with names the boys had never even heard of. And even a chance to win a pristine 1978 Dodge Viper, blue in color, with two white stripes down the hood. Of course, the boys didn't win, but they were satisfied just being in the presence of such "vehicular beauties".

After the show, the boys headed out for their last splurge—dinner at a restaurant. They found a small diner on the outskirts of Atlanta called "Pete's Bar & Grill". That was where Luke met Vienna.

_She was a tall, voluptuous redhead with big green eyes and a deceptive smile. She'd 'accidentally' bumped into Luke while he and Bo were ordering their food at the bar, and she'd dropped her purse. Being the southern gentlemen he'd always been, Luke bent down to help her, and immediately noticed her beauty. One thing led to another, and they ended up staying at the restaurant until closing time, talking the night away. Bo, of course, was extremely annoyed. He and Luke had always had different tastes in women, but Bo knew that Luke would never have fallen for a woman of such "high maintenance" under normal circumstances. But these weren't normal circumstances. Just a week before, Luke was "dumped" by his girlfriend of almost a year, and though he tried to hide it, those closest to him knew how much it hurt him. Vienna was flirtatious in a way that made Luke feel special, and her intelligence impressed him. She was a little older than him, and had traveled a lot. She'd spent the first 10 years of her life in Paris, before coming to the U.S. Also, she'd gone to college, and bragged about her many exploits and adventures. Luke was fascinated, to say the least. Bo was disgusted. She was way out of Luke's league, and she knew it. Finally, after three hours of non stop conversation, they got more serious and began discussing relationships. Vienna said that she was looking for someone to love and to take care of her. Luke took the bait hook, line, and sinker. By the time the diner closed, he was standing out in the parking lot with her number in his hand and her arm looped around his. Just as a car began to pull up, she turned to Luke and gave him a long, passionate kiss. Bo had turned away. Luke, still seeing stars, didn't notice the burly man coming until he was standing right next to him. _

"_What're you doin' kissin' my girl?" he'd demanded, roughly pushing Luke away. _

"_Your girl?" Luke repeated, looking over at Vienna. She smiled sweetly._

"_This is my boyfriend, Michal," she said, touching him lightly on the arm._

_Luke was dumbfounded. _

"_But what about all you said about looking for somebody to love an' take care of ya?"_

"_Michal does that," she answered, stifling a laugh as the man stepped closer to Luke._

"_Look, buddy, she just gave me her phone number. It's obvious she's playin' some sort of game here," Luke said, turning three shades of red._

"_I don't care," Michal replied, shoving Luke so hard that he fell on the ground. In an instant, Bo was standing in front of him protectively._

"_You better cool down, mister," he warned, body tensed for a fight. Vienna grabbed Michal's arm. _

"_Come on, Michal," she said. "They're just a couple of country boys, anyway."_

_Reluctantly, Michal followed the redhead to the car and they drove off. Luke remained on the sidewalk, feeling extremely embarrassed._

"_You okay, Luke?" Bo asked anxiously, squatting down next to him._

"_Nothin' hurt but my pride," he said in a low voice. "Boy was I stupid."_

"_Yeah, ya were," Bo agreed, helping the older boy up. "But it's okay, I know how ya feel." After all, it was usually Bo who leapt without thinking, trusting his heart instead of his head. _

_They'd driven home in silence. _

Months passed, but Luke never quite got over what'd happened. They'd told Cooter the story, just because they told Cooter everything, but nobody really brought it up after that.

That is, until now.

"Bo, heh heh," Cooter chuckled nervously. "Come on, now. If it bothers y'all so much, _I'll_ foot the bill for the shocks." Luke, face still flushed, shook his head.

"No Cooter. If Bo here don't wanna replace the shocks, then we won't replace the shocks. He's just gonna have to live without flyin' the General." Bo nearly spit out his drink.

"What? No jumps?" Luke shook his head.

"Not 'til them shocks are replaced."

"But Luke, that ain't fair! The General's half mine, ya know!"

"I know. But it's half mine too, an' my half says that there ain't gonna be no more jumpin' 'til we get them new shocks." Bo thought about this for a moment. Then he sat back in his seat and sulked. Once again, Luke had won the argument.

They sat in silence for minute, listening to the raucous laughter and jukebox music surrounding them.

Bo got up suddenly and went over to the bar to order another bowl of popcorn. It was at that moment that two familiar-looking tough guys walked in.

The first man, a 6'7 brunette with broad shoulders and thick, muscular arms, turned to his friend.

"Is that who I think it is, standing over there?" He motioned with hand. The second man was shorter and slimmer than the first, but was just as muscular and had bushy brown hair.

He answered, "Yeah, that's that Bo Duke kid. I never forget a backstabber." The first man smiled wickedly.

"What do you say we go 'greet' our old friend?" Together they walked up to the counter and stood on either side of Bo.

"Well, well, well. Long time; no see, Duke. It's been what…two years?" Bo just stared at the man in confusion.

"I believe y'all might have me mixed up with somebody else…." He never got to finish, because the next thing Bo new he was on his back on the floor, staring up at the two men who now seemed extremely miffed.

"Don't play games with us, Duke. We're gonna teach you a lesson you'll never forget!"

Just as the big man was roughly yanking Bo up off the floor, realization hit him, and he instantly remembered who these men were. Unfortunately, he didn't realize it quick enough to stop a fist from slamming into his face, sending him head first toward the corner of the bar.

Upon hearing the commotion, Luke and Cooter stood up, both ready to fight and trying to see through throngs of people what was going on near the counter. All Luke saw was a flash of yellow getting thrown across the room, and he bolted through the crowd. Without thinking, he stepped directly in between the big man and his cousin.

"Listen mister, I don't know what my cousin did to get ya so riled up but…if ya mess with him, ya mess with me."

"And me," Cooter added, coming to stand next to Luke.

**Balladeer:** _Now don't ya just love that? Them boys may have their fights, but in the end it all comes down to bein' family. An' one family ya just don't mess with is the Dukes._

To Luke's surprise, the big man laughed. Turning to his buddy, he nudged him with his elbow.

"Hey, I don't think these rubes remember who we are!" They found it hysterical.

"I…remember…" came a breathless voice from behind Luke and Cooter. It was Bo, struggling to his knees, blood trickling down the side of his face from where his temple had connected with the edge of the wooden counter.

"It's…Vinny Hayes and Marshall Woodruff."

Cooter's eyebrows furrowed; he'd never heard of these men. But Luke knew exactly who they were, and his eyes flashed with anger as turned to face them.

"What're you doin' here?" he demanded, voice low and dangerous.

"I don't think that's none of your business, jerk-off."

"Oh, I just made it my business," Luke retorted hotly.

"Don't mess with me, Duke," Vinny warned, clenching his fist.

"You started it, pal," replied Luke, not backing down an inch.

"An' I'm gonna finish it!" Vinny yelled, swinging his fist with all his might. Luke ducked and socked him in the solar-plexus. He was taken by surprise, however, when Marshall tackled him from the side, and was even more surprised when Cooter picked the man up from behind and flung him into a table.

What next ensued was an all-out free for all barroom brawl, and Luke and Cooter were right in the middle of it.

Daisy, who just happened to be starting her shift, walked in the side door right in the midst of the fighting. She had to duck as a beer glass was thrown her way and shattered on the wall behind her.

It was then that she noticed Bo, who was still on his knees next to the bar, holding his bleeding head.

"Oh, Bo…what happened!" She asked, touching him lightly on the arm. He had his eyes shut tight.

"I'll tell ya when the world stops spinnin'."

"Oh, suga'…you're just always gettin' into trouble, aren't ya?" She said with a sad smile, grabbing a dishrag from behind the counter and pressing it to his head.

**Balladeer**: _When'd she figure that one out?_

A single gunshot caused everyone to stop in their tracks, and as the smoke cleared there stood Roscoe and Enos, standing in the middle of the room with their guns drawn.

"Now everybody just freeze now…" the sheriff scanned the room until he found what he was looking for. The Duke boys.

"Enos, you go on an' cuff an' stuff them Duke boys," he ordered the deputy. Enos frowned.

"On what charge, sheriff?"

"Enos! Ain't it obvious? Charge 'em for disorderly conduct! They started the fight, didn't they?"

"They didn't start nothin', Roscoe!" Cooter protested angrily.

"Hush, Cooter! Will ya just hush! I'm the sheriff here; don't ya think I know what was goin' on?"

"Roscoe, listen," Daisy spoke up suddenly. "I don't know how this fight started, but all I saw when I came in was that big fella there wailin' on Luke, and Bo layin' here with his head bleedin'. I think Bo an' Luke were fighin' in self-defense." Roscoe frowned.

"Oh, tiddly-tuddly! You Dukes just lie; ya just lie all the time. Now Enos, you go on an' cuff 'em."

"She's got a point, sheriff. Bo an' Luke ain't the type to start a fight, but they do try an' stop 'em."

"Enos!" Roscoe shouted, making the deputy jump. "I'm in charge here, an' I told ya to go an arrest them Dukes!"

"Roscoe! You can't arrest my cousins when of 'em is hurt!" Daisy shouted from where she knelt next to Bo. Luke's eyebrows shot up as he strained to see where Bo was. All former grudges forgotten, he was filled only with concern for his young cousin. He didn't think Bo had been hurt that bad.

The crowd of spectators thinned, so that the sheriff and deputy could see Bo on his knees, with Daisy holding a dishrag against a cut on the boy's head. As soon as Luke got a clear view, he made a beeline toward them, Cooter following on his heels.

"You okay, Bo?" Luke asked, placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder. Bo looked up at him with a twinkle in his eye.

"It ain't as bad as it looks, Luke," he whispered quickly. "Daisy's just playin' it up to get us outta goin' to jail." Luke nodded in understanding, then turned to Roscoe.

"Uh, Roscoe, I think this cut's gonna need stitches. We'd best get Bo here over to Doc Petticord." Cooter and Daisy quickly agreed. Roscoe, who didn't want to be responsible for facing Jesse Duke if one of the boys were hurt on his account, relented.

"Alright…but…after that y'all gotta go back the farm 'stead of causin' trouble here." Enos tapped him on the shoulder.

"Uh, sheriff, what do we do about these fellas?" he asked, motioning to Hayes and Woodruff.

"Yeah, they started it, Roscoe!" Cooter said loudly.

"Oh, will you just hush! I know how to do my job; I'm the sheriff, ain't I? Now," he began, turning to the two strangers. "I'm gonna have to ask y'all to leave town."

Vinny smiled smugly.

"No problem, sheriff. We won't give ya no trouble. Just wanted to let our old friends here know we was in town," he said, staring at the Duke boys.

Before they walked out of the door, he leaned over to Luke and whispered low in his ear.

"We'll be back, plowboy." Luke just glared as they walked out of the bar.

As soon as the two men left, Roscoe began barking orders.

"Alright! Everybody clear out! Go on, now, there's nothin' more to see…go on, now back to what ya were doin'!"

"Hey Daisy," Enos greeted, walking up shyly. "Do y'all need a ride to Doc Petticord's?"

"Naw, Enos, I think we got it from here, thanks though," Luke replied, gently helping Bo to his feet.

Immediately the world tilted, and Bo sagged toward the floor. Cooter was there instantly, grabbing the boy's other arm as they helped him outside. Bo was playing it up, of course, but much of it was not an act, and Luke could tell.

As soon as they got out to the General, Bo sagged against the passenger side door.

"You alright?" Luke asked for the second time. Bo shook his head slowly.

"I think I hit my head harder than I thought." Luke sighed, feeling a bit guilty at not being able to better protect Bo from those goons.

"Alright, we'll have Doc Petticord check ya out," he said as he helped Bo slide into the seat.

"Luke, who were those men y'all were fightin' with?" Daisy asked expectantly.

He stopped for a moment, hesitating, then decided that now was not the time to explain it.

"It's a long story Daisy," he said quickly, heading for the driver side of the General.

Maybe it was the fact that Luke wouldn't look her in the eye, or the way Bo sat silently in the passenger seat, staring at his lap and fidgeting with his hands. Maybe it was a woman's intuition. But something in her gut told Daisy that something was wrong. She glanced over at Cooter, but could tell from the look on his face that he didn't have the slightest clue to what was going on, either.

"We'll call ya from the farm," Luke called over the roar of General's engine. Daisy just nodded, unable to settle the uneasiness in her stomach.

As the General drove off toward town, kicking up dust behind it, Cooter wrapped a comforting arm around Daisy's shoulders.

He too, was confused.

**Balladeer**: _Now everybody's confused. Friends, somehow I think this thing's only gettin' started. Stick around._

A/N: Okay, don't hate me for stopping here. I have a really bad cold, but I know y'all wanted the second chapter up, so here it is. Now, this one and the next one kinda set the stage for the rest of the story, so don't count on much explaining. Stick with me, though, and I promise you that it'll be one heck of a ride.

Don't forget to review!


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Sorry for the wait…I'm over the cold, but school's been busy. You know how it is. Thanks to everyone who reviewed…you guys are awesome! And T.S. Blue—don't you give anything away! Grrr!

Alright, lots of action in this one. Enjoy!

Chapter 3: Ransacked

"Ow," Bo mumbled, flinching as the good Dr. Petticord cleaned the cut on his head with disinfectant.

"The good news is that you aren't going to need any stitches," the elderly man commented, never taking his eyes off of his work.

Doc Petticord may have been a "country doctor" all his life, but it certainly wasn't because he was under-qualified. It was a little-known fact in Hazzard County that Miles Petticord had graduated with a degree in medicine from Georgia State University, and had had a promising internship at the Atlanta Memorial Hospital before moving to Hazzard. Myles was a kind-hearted man with a genuine love for people, and the impersonal ways of most "city doctors" disgusted him. He chose instead to move to Hazzard after marrying his wife, Susie, and they soon became highly respected members of the community. It was here that they raised their three children, and it was here that they eventually planned to be buried.

"What's the bad news?" Luke asked naturally.

"Well, the bad news is that Bo here has a slight concussion. It wouldn't have been so bad at all if he hadn't gotten hit in the temple, but that's a soft spot on the head, and getting hit there can affect balance, coordination…basically causing the symptoms of a concussion.

"Which means," the doctor continued, giving Bo a 'you're not going to like this' look.

"Here it comes…" Bo moaned, dropping his head to his chest. The boys had been in and out of the hospital for concussions and such before, and knew what to expect.

"You're going to have to take it easy for the next couple of days. No driving. No strenuous physical activity."

"How is driving 'strenuous'?" Bo asked immediately, his typical response.

Luke rolled his eyes.

"When you're behind the wheel? Cousin, believe me, it's strenuous."

"Now Bo, I mean it. Concussions aren't anything to mess with. Don't make me call your Uncle Jesse," Petticord threatened.

Bo knew better than to argue further. If Uncle Jesse got a call from the doctor talking about concussions and all other medical jargon, Bo wouldn't be allowed to leave the couch for a week. It had happened before.

"Ah, no need for that, doc. Thanks, though," Bo said quickly, standing to leave. He got little farther than the door before a wave of dizziness swept over him, and he swayed on his feet.

"You gonna be okay?" Luke asked, grabbing Bo's arm as he sagged slightly against the wall.

"Yeah, let's get out of here," Bo replied, not wanting the doctor hovering over him again.

It wasn't until they began the drive home that the boys had time to really reflect on what had happened at the Boar's Nest.

It was a mostly silent drive, both boys lost in their own thoughts. Bo finally broke the silence when he couldn't take it anymore.

"So, what's your plan?" he asked, staring at Luke intently.

"What plan?" Luke answered, though he knew very well where the conversation was headed.

"Duh…Marshall and Vinny. What're we gonna do?" Luke sighed.

"I'll tell ya what we're gonna do. We're gonna lay low for awhile 'til we find out if they left town or not."

"You know they didn't, Luke. They want revenge; that's why they came." Luke's jaw clenched in frustration as he remembered Vinny's words from earlier that day_. "We'll be back, plowboy." _

"Look, I don't wanna jump into this one right off or somebody's liable to get hurt," Luke reasoned in his 'no-nonsense' tone. "Marshall and Vinny are unpredictable, an' it ain't worth it to get tangled with 'em right now. Besides, Daisy's gonna want our help this weekend with Uncle Jesse's birthday party."

Bo gave him a blank look.

"Uncle Jesse's birthday party?"

"Yeah, his birthday is this Sunday," Luke replied as if Bo should've already known.

"Yeah, I know that. Nobody ever told me about no birthday party, though." Luke tried not to grin.

"That's because ya can't keep a secret to save your life."

"That ain't true!" Bo protested, feigning a look of profound shock.

"Oh it ain't? Funny, I seem to remember findin' out about my own birthday party awhile back…who was it that let the cat outta the bag? Hmmm…I can't remember…." Luke said sarcastically.

Bo frowned.

"Cute Luke. Real cute," he replied with a smirk as they pulled up in front of the farm house.

Luke kept a careful eye out for Bo as he climbed out of the car, but he seemed to be doing okay so he went on ahead into the house.

What he saw took his breath away.

It looked like a war zone.

In the kitchen, the table and chairs were broken and thrown about the room; the cupboard doors were hanging wide open, their contents spewed about on the floor. Glass from cups and other dishes lay on the on floor as well, where they'd purposefully been smashed. Luke could tell from his position that living room, too, had been ransacked.

He stood there for a minute, frozen with shock.

"Luke, what…?" Bo had come up behind him and now stood, mouth agape, staring at the destruction. "Luke, what happened?"

"I don't know…." Luke replied, fear gripping him as remembered who had been home all day.

"Uncle Jesse!" he yelled in the house. Receiving no reply, he turned to Bo touched him lightly on the arm. "Stay here," he ordered, before beginning to pick his way through the rubble. Bo, who'd never been one to follow instructions, went outside and around the house looking for his uncle.

"Uncle Jesse!" he called, cupping his hands over the sides of his mouth. Realizing the older man was nowhere close, he ran back to the porch.

"Is he in there?" he asked worriedly as Luke came back outside.

"Naw, I can't find him. His truck's gone, so maybe he's workin' the fields." Both boys hurried over to the General and hopped inside, then raced down the dirt road that led to the first forty acres of farmland owned by the Dukes.

"There's the pickup!" Bo exclaimed suddenly, pointing through the windshield. As Luke brought the General to a careening halt, both boys jumped out and began sprinting toward the white truck.

"Uncle Jesse!" Luke shouted, noticing the man bent down by the wheel of the truck. Standing quickly, the old man's smile faded when he noticed the distress in both boys' eyes.

"What happened?" he demanded, taking a few steps forward toward Luke.

"Are you alright?" Luke asked breathlessly, bending down to place his hands on his knees.

"Well, of course I'm alright. My only problem is that I run over a rock an' blew the tire off of this dang truck. I just finished replacin' it. What in tarnation has gotten into you boys?"

"Luke," Bo called warningly, before Luke could answer. The running had left him feeling dizzy and nauseous, and he felt his legs give way underneath him suddenly.

"Easy," Luke said, grabbing Bo around the torso before he fell over. Gently he eased him to the ground, where the blonde boy sat, panting and trying to catch his breath.

"Will one of you boys please tell me what in the world is goin' on?" Jesse demanded, looking down on his youngest charge with concern.

"Sorry, Uncle Jesse. It's just that, we got back from the Boars Nest an' found the house a wreck. Everythin' inside is smashed up…looks like a tornado went through or something."

"What?" whatever Jesse had expected to come out of Luke's mouth, that wasn't it.

"It's true," Luke insisted with a half-shrug. He didn't know what to make of it, either.

"Well, what's wrong with him?" Jesse asked, pointing to Bo's bowed head.

"He's got a little concussion," Luke explained. "We got into a little fight down at the Boars Nest an' he hit his head."

"You took him to Doc Petticord?" Jesse asked, knowing that it must have been a pretty bad hit if the boys had gone to the doctor. Usually they'd just sleep it off.

"Yeah," Luke replied, glancing down at Bo.

"It ain't that bad, Uncle Jesse, really," Bo said quickly.

"Well there certainly ain't nothin' good about a concussion. Come on, let's get you in the truck so's we can see what in Sam hill is goin' on back at the house."

When they got back to the house, (Jesse and Bo had driven the pickup while Luke had driven the General) Luke insisted on going inside first, just to make sure no one was there. When Jesse saw the disaster, he was shocked.

"Who would tear a man's house to bits like this?" he wondered aloud. "Thieves?" He looked at Luke for some sort of explanation. Luke just shrugged.

"What would they steal?" They stood there in the kitchen for a while, numbed by the damage around them. Then slowly, little at a time, they began the process of cleaning up.

By the time Daisy got home from her shift, the kitchen and living room were relatively cleaned up, though all the dishware had been smashed to bits as well as the table and chairs. For dinner Daisy heated up some venison in a metal pot, which they ate straight from, sitting on the floor in the middle of the living room.

"I want you boys to go into town first thing in the morning an' report this," Jesse said after a thoughtful silence.

"But Uncle Jesse, Roscoe ain't gonna listen to us," Bo exclaimed negatively.

"He might, even if ya have to bring him back here to show him the evidence."

"Yeah, maybe we shouldn't have cleaned everythin' up," Luke added with a grim smirk.

"I just don't understand who would do such a thing," Daisy said with a sigh.

"Well if ya ask me…do y'all smell something burnin'?" asked Bo, sniffing the air slightly.

"Daisy?" Jesse looked to her, wondering if she'd overcooked the venison or something.

"I turned the burner off…." Daisy replied, standing to go out and double check.

Suddenly, all the Duke men jumped to their feet as Daisy screamed.

"Uncle Jesse! Luke! The barn's on fire; come quick!" She stood in the kitchen with one hand over her mouth in shock, the other hand pulling back the curtain from the window over the sink.

The flames flickered brightly in the night as they engulfed the structure, heavy smoke filling the air with a rancid smell.

"Daisy, you call the fire department; boys, we gotta get them animals out!" Jesse barked, following his nephews out the front door.

"You stay here!" Luke yelled over the noise, glancing at Bo over his shoulder.

"No way, cousin!" Bo shouted back, following the older boy into the burning barn.

Luke ran to Maudine's stall first and threw open the front gate. The animal's eyes rolled wildly with fear, and she took off for the door as soon as Luke slapped her backside.

Bo ran to the goat's pen and opened that gate, chasing the animal almost to the door to make sure it got out. The chickens were next, both boys working frantically to open each cage door, lungs burning with the growing amount of smoke. The terrified birds flew out of the cages as soon as the doors were opened, flapping wings and scratching claws toward anything standing in their way. Luke suddenly recoiled as one old hen clawed at his eye, and he stumbling backward with a yell. Bo looked over in horror as blood began seeping out between the fingers Luke held over the eye.

"Luke, get outta here!" Bo cried hoarsely, continuing to throw open cage doors. He never before realized just how many chickens they'd owned.

"I can't see anything…." Luke shouted back, his sentence drowned out by the familiar wail of sirens just outside the barn.

Just as Bo opened the last caged door, the loft of the barn began to collapse.

"Bo!" Luke screamed his cousin's name as deafening splinters of wood cracked above them.

Bo looked up and reacted just in time, dodging the first burning timber as it fell toward where he stood. Bolting over to Luke, he yanked the older boy by the arm and bolted outside, just as the entire barn began to cave in.

They ran, stumbling, over to where Uncle Jesse stood with Daisy next to the fire truck.

Bo immediately fell to his knees, sudden pain in his head taking his breath away. Luke knelt coughing and groaning just a few feet away.

Daisy ran to Bo first, out of instinct, but Bo gently pushed her away.

"…Luke's bleedin'," he said hoarsely, pointing to where Uncle Jesse now knelt next to the older boy.

"Luke, you gotta move your hand so we can see the damage," Jesse ordered, not sure if he really wanted to see, there was so much blood. Luke shook his head. He was afraid of what would happen when he moved his hand, and was inwardly terrified that the chicken might have gouged out his eye.

"Bo!" A familiar voice called running to the younger boy's side. It was Cooter.

"Mabel called an' told me what was happenin' as soon as y'all called the fire department. Ya alright, buddyroo?" He asked, placing a hand on Bo's shoulder.

Bo couldn't respond, overcome with a splitting headache. He shook his head, but that only made it worse, and he began to feel himself fall as darkness filled his vision.

"Bo!" Cooter shouted worriedly, cradling the unconscious boy in his lap. "Uncle Jesse! Somethin's wrong with Bo!"

"You stay with him," Jesse told Daisy as he hurried over to tend to his other nephew. Daisy grabbed on to Luke's unused arm to keep him from moving, and began to cry.

"I'm gonna go get some help," Cooter said as the old man took his place by Bo's side. Seconds later, medics were pushing Jesse and Daisy aside as they tended to the boys.

"Y'all can ride over with me in my truck," Cooter said as the ambulance doors shut. Jesse nodded, forgetting all about the barn as he and Daisy climbed in the cab of Cooter's tow truck.

Later, at the hospital, after nearly an hour of filling out forms and pacing restlessly, a doctor finally walked out to them.

"Are you the Duke family?" he asked in a kind voice. "I'm Doctor Cook; I treated your nephews."

"Yes, my boys were brought in earlier…are they okay?"

"Well, your nephew Bo, I understand was recovering from a previous head injury?"

"Yeah, he had a concussion," Jesse replied worriedly.

"I see. Well the over-exertion and the smoke inhalation definitely didn't help him any. That's why he lost consciousness. The good news is that there is no serious damage, he'll just have to take it easy for a week or two, and we gave him some painkillers for his headache."

The doctor smiled as he watched the family take a collected sigh of relief.

"What about Luke?" Cooter asked next.

"Luke is a very lucky young man. He was gouged by a chicken in the eye area, and while it was rather messy, his eye was not damaged in any way. The cut occurred just above the eye, in the soft fleshy skin above the eyelid. We gave him a few stitches, and it'll be sore for awhile, but other than that he'll be fine."

"Praise the Lord," Jesse said quietly. "When can they come home?"

"I see no reason to keep them overnight. If their vitals still look good in half an hour, you all can go home. And if you want to see them, their room number 27—it's just down the hall on the left."

"Thank you, doctor," Jesse replied sincerely, before briskly walking in the direction the man had pointed to.

"Luke!" Daisy cried, running to the first boy she saw in the room and throwing her arms around his neck.

"Hey, Daisy…ya miss me already?" Luke greeted her with a chuckle. She pulled back to get a good look at his eye.

"Oh, suga'…that looks like it hurts," she winced with empathy at the swollen and reddened skin around the cloth bandage. Luke just smiled. He was just so happy to have his eye and his sight that he felt like he could take anything.

"Aw, t'ain't nothin', sweetheart. Just a scratch."

"How you doin' boy?" Jesse asked, walking over to Bo's bed since Daisy was at Luke's.

"Well, my head don't hurt," Bo answered honestly, trying to give a reassuring grin. Truth was, he felt awful shaky, and dreaded the moment he would have to stand and walk out of the hospital.

"You boys did real good tonight. I'm real proud of ya," Jesse said softly, reaching out to brush some blonde curls out of Bo's eyes.

"Did they save the barn?" Luke asked from the other bed; though he knew very well that it was unsalvageable.

"I don't know. We left as soon as they took you boys off," Jesse admitted, eyes growing distant as he reflected on the loss. "But barn or no barn, all that matters is that you boys are okay."

"What happened? I mean…did somebody leave a lantern in there or somethin'?" Cooter asked.

The Dukes were silent. Truth was, they didn't have a clue how the fire started.

"You don't think…" Luke began slowly, "You don't think that the same fellas who wrecked the farm are the same fellas who started the fire…do ya?"

"Somebody wrecked y'all's farm?" Cooter asked again, frowning in confusion.

"Yeah, somebody broke in an' tore the place apart. It looked like a war zone or somethin'," Daisy answered in a sad tone.

"But who would do such a thing? Us Dukes is good people…we don't have no enemies except for Boss Hogg an' Roscoe," Jesse pondered aloud.

"Yeah, an' even _they_ wouldn't stoop that low," Bo added.

"I think somebody's out to get us," Luke said, eyes flashing fiercely with the thought.

"Now boy's, let's not go jumpin' to conclusions here. We'll just go home an' sleep tonight. An' we'll figure out all this in the mornin'," Jesse said, though his eyes were dark and troubled.

Sleeping though, was not going to be an easy task this night.

As Cooter pulled out in front of the farmhouse, they all stared at the pile of rubble that used to be the Duke's barn.

"Well, I'll be there to help when y'all are ready to build a new one," Cooter said, trying to help. It didn't work.

They waved him off, assuring him that they would be alright, and thanking him for all his help. The mechanic drove away reluctantly, wishing he could ease the burden on his friends.

Daisy gripped Bo's arm as they walked into the house, for which the unsteady boy was very grateful.

She led him to the couch where Luke was already sprawled, and made sure he was settled before she left to flick on the lights. As light flooded the room, something made Daisy look up at the wall, and she screamed.

There, spray painted in huge, red letters were the words "We'll Get You Dukes".

The boys just stared up in shock.

Suddenly, they knew EXACTLY what was going on.

TBC….

A/N: Alright, tell me what you think. How's my writing? I appreciate all comments. Thanks again, y'all!


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Well, I truly am sorry for the wait. The only reason I got this up is because it's fall break. Honestly though, this chapter was terribly hard to write...the muse just wasn't flowing at all. Hopefully the next one will be easier. I guess this is kind of a 'transition' chapter...helps me get on with the next part of the story. Def. not my best, so I apologize for that too. However...it should get better, lol. Thanks to reviewers...thanks for all your patience. Enjoy!

Chapter 4: The Stakes Get Higher

* * *

It had taken much scolding and threatening from Uncle Jesse, but the three Duke cousins were finally in bed.

Daisy had been nearly hysterical, sobbing from fear and exhaustion. The boys had tried to console her by offering to stand guard of the house all night, but Jesse would hear none of it.

"We Dukes ain't gonna disrupt our whole lives just 'cuz a few lowlifes wanna break into our home. We still got a farm to run, an' we're gonna run it whether the house is still standin' or not!" The words were harsh, but the boys understood his point.

The Dukes would not be ruled by fear.

So reluctantly, Daisy and the boys had gone off to bed, leaving the ugly painted words on the wall of living room.

Daisy fell asleep almost immediately; however, the boys across the hall fared no such luck.

"Luke?" Bo whispered in the dark from his bed across the room.

"Yeah?"

"What're we gonna do?" Luke sighed.

"I don't know."

"Well, we gotta do somethin', Luke! They already burnt down the barn, what if the house is next?" Bo's voice was laced with panic.

"Bo, it ain't gonna do us no good to get worked up over this. That's just what they want us to do."

"But Luke…."

"Go to sleep, Bo," Luke cut him off. "We'll deal with it in the morning."

Bo settled down under the covers with a sigh. His last thought before drifting off was wondering how in the world Luke could keep so calm in a situation like this.

Luke, however, could not sleep. He had told Bo not to panic, but his own heart was racing. It was all he could do to lie in that bed; everything in him screamed that he should remain alert in case the men who were 'hunting' them came back. Within minutes, he could here the slow, even breathing of his sleeping cousin across the room. Luke knew that he had to be the only one still awake…and he was determined to keep it that way.

Being the oldest, Luke had always viewed himself as the 'protector' of his cousins. When he was discharged from the marines, however, he took the responsibility to a whole new level. It was almost as if Luke had become the new head of the household; Jesse had even seemed to take a backseat to some of the decision-making, allowing Luke to have some more of the responsibility he so desired. He realized though, that while the military had forced Luke to grow up quickly, the oldest cousin was still a boy at heart, and the few times when Luke would let that side of him show were very precious to the old man. He cared for his boys and Daisy more than anything, and the Lord knew that Jesse would burn the farm down himself if it meant that it would save one of his 'youngins' from harm.

That was why Jesse remained awake. He knew that across the hall, Luke was alert as well, ever-vigilant in his role as 'protector'. But even the strongest of souls needs a guardian, and Jesse would keep sleepless vigil as well, for Luke's sake. And even though he wasn't sure who or what had attacked their farm and their lives that night, Jesse knew they all were going to need protection from the Ultimate Guardian. As the night hours slowly ticked away, Jesse prayed.

Morning dawned quietly over the Duke household. Luke opened his eyes groggily, realizing with disappointment that he had fallen asleep at some point during the night. Glancing over at his cousin's bed, he was surprised to see Bo sitting on the edge, fully dressed and staring at him intently.

"What?" Luke prompted, squinting at the sunlight streaming through the window.

"We gotta tell Daisy an' Uncle Jesse," Bo replied in a low voice. Luke sighed and rolled off the bed to his feet.

"If we tell 'em then they're gonna get all worked up an' worried over us. It ain't gonna help nothin'," Luke said, grabbing his jeans up off the floor and pulling them on.

"Well, they got a right to know what's goin' on," Bo insisted.

Luke sighed again and left the room to wash his face. Bo waited on his own bed, fidgeting with his hands and trying to control the anxious turmoil in his gut.

Ten minutes later Luke returned, looking refreshed, though Bo could tell he hadn't slept much from the bags under his eyes.

"We'll tell 'em. Just not right now," he said. Answering the question before it could leave Bo's lips, he said, "Soon." Changing the subject, he looked up, "How's the head?"

Bo shrugged. "It don't hurt as bad." Luke nodded, though he didn't quite believe it.

The boys were not surprised to see Jesse in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Luke could tell right away that the old man had been up all night, but he didn't say anything.

"Smells like bacon," Bo commented, peeking over Jesse's shoulder.

"It _is_ bacon…how's your head?"

"Not as bad as Luke's eye," Bo snickered. Luke frowned. He knew it looked bad from the glance he got in the bathroom mirror. His eye was nearly swollen shut, black and blue and purple skin surrounding a sore-looking spot with four neat stitches curving around the edge of his eyelid. Still, it didn't feel as bad as it looked, and Luke hadn't expected anyone to make any comments.

"You want some ice for that?" Jesse asked with concern, wincing as he turned and saw the damage.

"Naw, you can save the ice for Bo's head…he's gonna need it after I get done with him," Luke said, eyes twinkling at the clever retort.

Jesse managed a grin. He knew that both boys were trying to keep the mood light, just like he knew that they were hiding something from him. But he let it go, figuring the truth would come out eventually. He just hoped that by then it wasn't too late.

"Mornin', y'all," Daisy's voice carried through the kitchen.

"Mornin'," the Duke men replied in greeting.

"Aw, Uncle Jesse, thanks for cookin'," she said sweetly, hugging the old man from behind. Turning to her cousins, she asked, "How're you boys doin'?"

By the time they'd assured her that they were fine, and managed to feign her attempts to mother their wounds, breakfast was ready and on the table.

"Sure smells good, Uncle Jesse," Bo commented, as they all got settled and prepared to pray.

Just as they were bowing their heads, the window behind Daisy busted in, sending shards of glass shooting across the room. Chairs were knocked over in the Dukes haste, surprised by the sudden commotion. Luke was the first one to notice the paper sack that had landed in on the floor. Reacting on gut instinct, he yanked Daisy's arm, pulling her toward the living room.

"Everybody out of the kitchen!" he yelled, turning and pushing Bo the same way he did Daisy.

No sooner had they reached the couch than the paper sack exploded, filling the house with smoke and a deafening silence.

"Is everyone alright?" Jesse asked shakily, getting up from his knees.

"I'm okay," Bo answered with a cough. "What the heck happened?"

"I think it was a bomb," Luke replied, unable to mask the slight tremor in his voice. "Daisy, are you alright, sweetheart?" he asked, turning her toward him.

"I'm okay," she mumbled, but her face was ashen, the blood from a cut on her cheek standing out against the paleness.

"We'll have to take a look at that cut," Luke said, lightly touching her uninjured cheek.

"Let's get her out of this smoke," Jesse suggested, taking one of Daisy's arms.

As the Dukes stumbled out into the front yard, they all turned at Bo's sharp intake of breath. Turning, their eyes traveled down the blonde's outstretched arm to the area where he pointed to. There, spray-painted on the side of Jesse's white pickup in big, ugly letters were the words, "you're dead."

It was too much for Daisy, who fainted into Jesse's arms.

"Boys, you'd best run over to Doc. Petticord an' ask him to make a house call," Jesse called, struggling with Daisy's limp form.

"Is she gonna be alright?" Bo asked in the high-pitched tone he used whenever he was unnerved. Jesse nodded as Luke helped him lay Daisy out on the soft grass. Grabbing onto the oldest cousin's sleeve suddenly, he said, "Luke, I don't know what's goin' on here, but I want you boys to find out."

"Y-yes sir," Luke replied, surprised by his Uncle's sudden change of character. He never usually suggested putting the boys in danger.

Standing, Jesse took a step forward so he was standing in between both boys. Glancing at each of them with weary eyes, he put his hands on their shoulders.

"Boys, I know I ain't never asked ya to do anythin' like this before, but…I just don't know what to do. This whole thing has got me plumb scared outta my wits…an' I gotta think of Daisy, too," he said, glancing over to where the young woman still lay, unconscious. The boys understood what he was saying. Whoever was attacking them was after Bo and Luke. Jesse didn't have to know the details; he could tell just by the guilty look in their eyes.

"I want ya to promise me that you'll be careful," Jesse continued, eyes reflecting love and concern.

"We will," Luke promised, squaring his shoulders a bit.

"Yessir," Bo added as his Uncle's gaze traveled to him.

"I love ya," Jesse said, pulling them each into a firm hug. "Now, you go fetch the doctor, an' then call me from town."

It seemed like a long ride to Doc Petticord's, even with Bo tearing up the dusty roads. After a hasty explanation about Daisy's condition, the good doctor hopped into his car and sped off toward the Duke farm. The boys headed straight to a payphone across the street.

"Uncle Jesse?" Luke greeted after the old man picked up.

"Yeah, doc's on his way," Luke said after a minute, leaning against the side of the booth as he talked.

"Yes sir. Will do. Love you too, Uncle Jesse," he said after a moment's silence, then hung up the phone.

"He said Daisy came around not long after we left. He thinks she just fainted, but it's best to let the doc check her out anyway."

"Yeah," Bo agreed. "So, now what?"

"Well, we need to find out where these goons are hidin' out. An' what exactly they want from us," Luke said determinedly as he headed for the General.

"You know what they want from us," Bo said in a low voice as he slid in the driver's side window and started the car. Luke just shot him a knowing look.

"Revenge."

* * *

A/N: okay...there it is...you know what to do...I promise to get the next chappie out faster...don't forget to feed the muse though ) 


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: This is getting better….

Chapter 5: More Trouble

* * *

The Boars Nest was unusually crowded for a Thursday, and the boys had to push their way through a throng of familiar faces to get to the bar.

"What, did everybody take off work today or somethin'?" Bo asked, looking around at the crowd.

"Naw," Luke replied. "Remember that the mill shut down this week 'cuz of some major mechanical problem. All these folks are celebratin'." Bo nodded, remembering, then turned toward a waitress to order a drink.

"Whew, I tell you what, buddyroos. Y'all look like ya went a couple rounds with big 'ole grizzly or somethin'," Cooter's friendly voice carried across the room as he walked toward them. "Shouldn't y'all be takin' it easy?"

"Can't. We got some huntin' to do," Luke replied in an even voice. Cooter looked at him for a moment, realizing that his friend did not mean hunting animals.

"Trouble?" he asked, watching Luke's reaction carefully. Luke nodded.

"Big trouble."

Glancing over each shoulder before turning to lean toward Luke, he gently tapped the Duke boy on the shoulder to get his attention.

"Listen…speakin' of trouble….there's a fella here been askin' a mighty lot of questions about y'all," he said, talking out of the corner of his mouth. Luke's eyes grew wide.

"Where?"

"Right side of the room; sittin' at the corner table; Wearin' a suit." Luke quickly followed Cooter's directions and found himself staring at a middle aged man, in good shape, with dark, watchful eyes. Luke frowned.

"Did he say who he was or what he wanted?" Cooter shook his head.

"No…acted real secretive-like. I told him I don't talk to folks who ain't polite enough to give their name an' the reason they's askin' about my friends. I think it made him mad."

Luke chuckled. One thing about Cooter Davenport that could always be counted on was loyalty, and though many didn't see it in him, a great deal of honesty as well.

"Hey Bo," Luke said, looking over his shoulder at his cousin, who'd only been half-listening, and flirting with the waitress instead.

"Hey, what?" Bo asked, never taking his eyes off the girl.

"Ya wanna get your mind back on that task at hand here?"

"Not really," Bo admitted, still smiling at the waitress.

"Bo," Luke called in a warning voice. Reluctantly Bo turned away from the waitress and looked at Luke.

"What's goin' on?" He asked, a bit irritated.

"Cooter says there's a fella here been askin' questions about us," Luke explained, keeping his voice low.

"What kind of questions?" Asked Bo. Cooter shrugged.

"What ya look like, where ya live, stuff like that."

Bo swallowed nervously, his soft blue eyes wide and anxious.

"So what're we gonna do?"

"Well, whatever y'all plan to do, remember that I got your back," Cooter said, adjusting his hat on his head.

"Well, let's go introduce ourselves," said Luke, standing and tucking a wayward edge of his shirt back into his jeans.

Together the three stood and strode toward the stranger at the back table, each of them straight-faced and tensed.

"Mister," Luke greeted the man in a deep, no-nonsense voice. Bo used to call it his 'marine voice', because it was so authoritative and direct.

"I'm Luke Duke. This here's my cousin Bo. We heard you was lookin' for us."

"You heard right," the man replied in a voice just as icy as Luke's.

"Well, we're right here," Luke retorted, crossing his arms across his chest.

A moment passed as the seated man peered intently at the two Duke boys, as if he could see through them to their souls. Finally, he shifted in his seat, and a hint of a grim smile formed on his lips.

"Have a seat, please," he said, motioning with his hand. "I won't bite."

Hesitating at first, Luke finally gave in and pulled up a chair, Bo following his lead. Cooter remained standing against the wall nearby, just within earshot of the trio.

"I've been trying to track you down for the past two weeks…it's funny how _remote_ a place like this can be," the man said with a light chuckle.

"What exactly do you want with us?" Luke asked sternly, glaring the man straight in the eye.

"What happened to your eye? I heard you needed stitches." the man shot back, eyes growing fierce. He turned to Bo. "And you; you're voice is a little hoarse…inhale a little too much smoke the other night?"

Bo's eyes clouded with confusion before realization set in and he jumped to his feet. "You…you…!" he sputtered angrily. Luke grabbed his arm and shook it.

"Sit down, Bo."

"But Luke, he…he burnt down our barn!"

"No, he didn't, Bo. Sit down," Luke ordered quietly. Reluctantly, Bo obeyed, glaring daggers at the strange man.

"Okay, so you know us. You've been watchin' us. Why?" demanded Luke.

"Ever seen these men?" asked the stranger, sliding two large photos across the table.

"That's…that's…" Bo stuttered again, seemingly unable to form words.

"Vinny Hayes and Marshall Woodruff. Yeah, we know of 'em," Luke answered, swallowing.

The man nodded.

"They arrived in Hazzard on Tuesday and stayed in motel outside of town. You met them on Wednesday when they roughed you up in here. Apparently the sheriff gave them orders to leave town, but we have no information of their current whereabouts." He locked eyes with Luke. "We do, however, have palpable evidence that they are still in this county."

Luke leaned forward in his seat, eyes giving away his anxiety, but voice as hard as granite.

"Who _are_ you?"

Reaching deep in his breast-pocket, the man slowly pulled out a small leather pouch. Flipping it open and sliding it across the table, Bo could not suppress a gasp when he saw what it was. A badge.

"Glenn Harkins…FBI."

"FBI?" Cooter hissed from where he stood glancing over Bo's shoulder.

"What's the FBI want with us?" Luke asked in a quieter voice, giving the man back his badge.

"Not you…well, not directly. We're after Hayes and Woodruff."

"Well, what do we got to do with it then?" Bo asked, unable to hide the slight tremor in his voice.

"Hayes and Woodruff are after you two," Glenn replied simply. "We need you in order to get to them."

"You're tellin' me the big 'ole FBI can't catch a couple of country bandits?" Luke drawled, body language portraying distrust.

"They're not just a couple of country bandits," Glenn replied evenly. "They are wanted for several counts of murder. They both have rap sheets a foot long. They are dangerous and we want them off the streets and behind bars where they belong."

"Well why didn't you come in here two days ago when they were beatin' on us in here? Ya know where they are, why don't ya grab 'em?" Luke asked with a snort.

"We've tried grabbing them up three times already. Each time they have escaped. And after each escape they have committed more heinous crimes. It needs to stop now."

Luke let out an exasperated sigh.

"You're the FBI, for heavens sake! You're tellin' me you can't catch the likes of Vinny Hayes and Marshall Woodruff?"

Glenn smiled sadly.

"Basically…yes. They keep slipping through our fingers. Seems we don't give you country boys enough credit."

Luke shook his head in disbelief. Out of all the things he'd expected to come out of this man's mouth, this wasn't it.

"You said you needed us…what for?"

Glenn grew somber.

"Bait. You're on their hit list."

Bo's mouth dropped open.

"They got a hit list?"

"Yes. It seems Hayes and Woodruff have made a game of doing away with all of their enemies. You two are next."

"How do you know this?" Luke demanded.

"We raided their trailers. In Vinny's we found a list of names…some of them crossed off. The crossed off ones were already dead. We also found a large amount of weapons stashed in there, among other questionable items."

"What we don't know," he added slowly. "Is why they are targeting you boys. How did you ever get involved with the likes of Woodruff and Hayes?"

"Well…it's actually a long story..." Luke said, lowering his eyes. Glenn smiled.

"I've been waiting a long time to hear it," he said.

Luke nodded in understanding.

Taking a deep breath, he began the story….

* * *

TBC…

A/N: Had to leave it there…sorry…had to post it to make y'all keep thirsting for more….


	6. Chapter 6

Authors Note: I haven't the slightest clue about NASCAR and how that system works. Nor am I aware of the types of clothes worn during the 70's and 80's, (I was born in '87). But I wanted more description in my writing this time around, so I tried adding more detail when it came to clothing and such. But I'm guessing. If anything is wrong or far-fetched…please feel free to tell me, but there's little I can do about it. Just use your imagination and pretend it all works this way. ;-)

Once again, sorry for the wait.

'Nuff said.

Chapter 6: It's Always About a Girl

* * *

"Well…it's actually a long story..." Luke said, lowering his eyes. Glenn smiled.

"I've been waiting a long time to hear it," he said.

Luke nodded in understanding.

Taking a deep breath, he began the tale….

"About a year ago me an' Bo was on the NASCAR circuit. Bo drove and I headed the pit crew. We met Vinny and Marshall at pre-season kickoff party bein' held at this ritzy restaurant in downtown Daytona…."

_Both boys had been dressed up in their Sunday best, but everyone else attending the party was from the city, and dressed to the nines in threads that the boys could never hope to afford. Suffice it to say that they were both feeling a little bit self-conscious at this upper-class gathering. _

_Bo and Luke had stayed close to the bar, keeping a low profile while flirting with the waitresses. That's when the trouble started. _

_Having no luck wooing the vivacious redhead behind the counter, Bo sighed and turned his attention elsewhere. His gaze fell upon a quiet girl with chestnut colored hair, who was sitting alone at one of the round tables off to his right. She looked very young, 'probably no more than 18,' Bo thought, and smiled. That would make her only a year younger than him. Perfect. _

_He continued to stare, captivated by her bright, light brown eyes and her soft features. Unlike the other women at the party, this girl wore little or no makeup, and a simple pair of silver hoop earrings was her only adornment. Her hair was shiny and smooth, and she wore it simply, letting it fall naturally around her shoulders. Even her clothes were modest; a simple burgundy colored shirt with a knee-length black skirt, and shoes that looked to be quite uncomfortable, as she made a habit of sliding them off of her feet and wiggling her toes. Over all, she gave an aura of unpretentiousness that was very appealing to the Duke boy, and soon Bo was no longer content just to stare. _

"_What're ya doin'?" Luke had asked as Bo abruptly stood up from the bar. _

"_To do what I do best, cousin," Bo replied with a grin, and swaggered over to where the young lady sat. _

_Luke watched with a slight prick of envy as his younger cousin charmed his way into sitting next to the pretty girl. Ever since Bo had hit his teenage years, he'd been infatuated with the opposite sex. Luke was too, of course, but he took a different approach to making the ladies swoon. While Bo relied on his good looks and sweet talking, Luke tended to make use of his own strength of character and quick wit to win the girls' hearts. Luke never went after a girl solely based on appearance; if it was one thing he couldn't stand, it was a girl with a pretty face but no brains. Bo, on the other hand, could care less about a girl's intelligence. It wasn't that he was shallow, it was just that he didn't think it mattered that much. If a girl loved him, and he loved her back, then that was all that mattered to Bo. Luke usually didn't even like the girls Bo went out with, but the mere fact that his younger cousin had gone on more dates than him made the elder Duke boy more envious than he liked to admit. _

_No more than 20 minutes passed before Luke heard an angry male voice behind him, loudly cursing an equally angered Bo Duke. _

"_What the heck are you doin' with my girl?" Luke turned quickly to see a large man standing toe to toe with his cousin, looking antsy for a fight._

"_Oh, Vinny!" The girl had responded, sounding fearful._

"Your_ girl?!" Bo had exclaimed, standing up immediately. "What, ain't she got a mind of her own? Can't she talk to who she wants to talk to?" _

_He had visibly checked the girl's left hand for signs of a ring...if he'd suspected she'd been married he wouldn't have even started a conversation. Being as it seemed she wasn't hitched, and this Vinny guy seemed like brute, Bo felt justified to defend himself and the pretty girl. He swallowed, however, as Vinny took a step forward and clenched his fists. _

"_Oh, don't Vinny! We were just talking, honest! Oh please just sit down...I promise it won't happen again!" The young girl's cheeks turned red with embarrassment as she pled with the man in a low voice. _

_Casually Luke made his way over to the table, noticing that a few people had noticed the outburst, and were staring curiously at the table from which it came. _

"_Bo...uh, come on...let's get outta here," Luke said quietly, placing a hand on the younger boy's arm and urging him toward the door. _

"_Yeah, you go on and get outta here, you country bums! You don't belong here anyhow!" Vinny said in a loud, angry voice. _

_Bo almost turned around to retaliate, but Luke shoved him forward out of the door. _

"_Aw, Luke! I'm so mad I could eat nails! What's a nice gal like that doin' with an ape like him anyway?! I shoulda hit him!" Bo shouted as they headed for the General._

"_Yeah, an' if ya would've hit him it would've jeopardized our even bein' here. They already think poorly of us cuz we're from the country—all we gotta do is screw up once and get a reputation for fightin' and then nobody'll want to sponsor us," Luke said firmly, slightly annoyed that his cousin had made a scene. "We didn't come here to meet pretty girls, we came here to race and earn the respect of all them veterans in there. Did ya talk to any of the drivers in there?"_

"_No," Bo sullenly replied._

"_Yeah, I didn't think so. We got to get to know the people we'll be racin' with Bo. We've gotta earn their respect." Bo sighed._

"_Okay, okay. I'm sorry, alright?" Luke nodded._

"_Don't be sorry; just don't do it again." They drove the rest of the way back to the hotel in silence. _

_There were two weeks left before the boys' first race, and they spent that fleeting time preparing in every way possible. They drove all day long on a practice track, timing the General and fine-tuning his motor. During the nights however, Bo was always off doing something or other, and Luke never could keep track of the boy. While he asked him constantly where he'd go off to each night, Bo would only give vague answers. So Luke stopped asking. He was a bit frustrated with his cousin's waywardness, but blamed it on immaturity and let it go. After all, _somebody_ had to focus on the upcoming race._

_The day before the big event, Bo came barging into the garage that held the General Lee, storming up to Luke, who was polishing the orange hood. _

"_Luke, we gotta do somethin'," Bo demanded, fire dancing in his eyes. _

_Luke stood up slowly from where he'd been bending over the General, giving Bo a quizzical look. _

"_What's goin' on?" he asked._

"_It's that Vinny Hayes, Luke. He's gone too far this time, an' if you don't wanna help me then I'll just take care of it myself!"_

"_Just hold on a minute Bo! I don't even know what you're talkin' about," Luke said, grabbing the boy's arm before he rushed off and did anything rash. Bo tended to be thoughtless when he was filled with passion. He had good intentions, but his heart always smothered whatever logic his head (or Luke) tried to give him. _

"_What happened?" Luke asked again, more firmly this time. He was surprised to feel trembling beneath his hand, which was gripping Bo's arm. The younger Duke boy was literally shaking with rage._

"_Here, sit down," commanded Luke, steering his young cousin to a nearby crate. Bo sank down onto the wooden box and ran his hand through his blonde curls. _

"_Aw Luke...you're gonna be mad at me when I tell ya," he warned, his facial expression flickering to one of guilty frustration. _

"_Just tell me," Luke pleaded. "The suspense is killin' me."_

"_Well...remember that girl that I met at the party a couple weeks ago?" Not waiting for Luke to reply, Bo continued. "Her name's Lisa and well, she's datin' Vinny Hayes."_

"_Bo..." Luke sighed, having an idea where this was going. _

"_But she don't want to be with him, Luke...he won't let her leave him," Bo rushed on. "An' well...we been gettin' together at night for the past couple weeks—nothin' serious—we just been talkin'," he explained, noting the questioning look Luke shot at him. "Well...last night she was nervous...told me that Vinny's been agitated lately. An' then this morning we was supposed to meet for lunch, an' she never showed. So's I went to the RV she's been stayin' in...an' I found her with a black eye. He HIT her, Luke!" _

_Luke sighed, reaching his arm up to scratch the side of his head. How did his cousin always manage to get himself into these situations?_

"_So is she gonna leave him, now?" Luke asked, already suspecting the answer. Bo frustratingly shook his head._

"_She says she's scared. She ain't gonna leave him unless she knows he ain't gonna hurt her." He paused for a moment. "He don't deserve her, Luke."_

"_An' I suppose you think your gonna save the day by bustin' his head in," Luke couldn't keep the sarcasm out of his voice. Bo exhaled loudly and stood up, anger evident in his stance. He stabbed a finger at Luke as he vented._

"_I KNEW I couldn't tell ya this! You always do this! YOU might not have the guts to do what needs to be done, but I for one ain't just gonna sit by while the poor gal gets beat around by that goon!" Now it was Luke's turn to shoot up out of his seat in anger._

"_Now just hold on second, hot head! I didn't say I wasn't gonna do nothin'. But why don't we try usin' our heads instead of rushin' in with guns blazin' an' making things worse? Did ya ever think of that?" Bo bit his lip, giving himself a chance to cool off and think a bit. Luke was right, as usual. _

"_Alright," he said with a sigh, tone changing to one of meekness. "I'm sorry, Luke. You're right, I wasn't thinkin'. What've ya got in mind?" _

"_Well, have either of ya gone to the police?" _

"_Well, no. What good would that do?" Luke chuckled a bit at his response._

"_Not all lawmen are like Roscoe an' Enos, Bo."_

Luke was brought back to the present by Glenn's voice. "So once you went to the police, then what happened?"

"Well, we went an' got Lisa first, then had her tell the sheriff her story. They wrote out a restraining order against Vinny, but they wouldn't put him jail because he was a racer an' they didn't want legal trouble."

"He was madder than a wet hen when he found out," Bo added. "He took the RV an' almost everything in it, an' Lisa had nowheres to go, so she moved in with us, cuz our suite had an extra room."

Bo paused a minute and blushed. Anyone who knew them knew that they would never take advantage of a girl or do anything indecent. They had been raised better than that. Lisa had needed someplace to stay, and the boys offered their extra bedroom. It was the same exact thing their Uncle would have done. The suite was being paid for by the NASCAR sponsers, pending they race well, so it was a secure setup at the time. And it was just until Lisa got enough money raised to buy an apartment. Once she got set up in the second bedroom, the boys never entered it. And while Bo and Lisa did grow closer, they kept their growing relationship pure, and never went behind closed doors. Still, the Duke boys blushed at telling it, because to anyone that didn't know them, it just sounded bad. Glenn, however, did seem to understand. He nodded and motioned for them to go on with the story.

"Things started gettin' really sticky after that…" Luke continued, eyes once again growing distant with memories.

_It was the day of the first NASCAR race of the season, half an hour before the starting gun would go off, and Bo was nowhere to be found. The rest of the pit crew, including Luke, had been in the pit for the past two hours, getting the General ready and checking all their equipment. Luke was getting frustrated...where was his cousin? _

"_Hey, have you seen Bo?" Luke asked Randy Duncan, an older black man on the pit-crew who'd become a friend to both boys over the past few months. _

"_Uh...I thought I saw him heading to the bathroom, but that was a while ago," Randy replied with a shrug. _

_Luke paused for a moment, then nodded, turning to jog in the direction of garage. He found Bo exactly where Randy said he would be; in fact, unbeknownst to Luke, the boy had been there for quite a while. Walking into the bathroom, he found the first stall empty. Noticing the second stall door was unlocked, he pushed it open a bit and sighed at the sight before him._

"_Aw, Bo..." Luke called gently, voice echoing over the sounds of retching in the small room. The blonde was half-knelt next to the toilet bowl, dry heaving, stomach having long been emptied. _

"_Just...give me a minute, Luke...'kay?" The younger Duke asked, wiping his mouth on the sleeve of his right arm, his left still firmly clutching the wall for support._

_Luke shook his head slightly. Bo had been fine up until today, self-confident and assured that the race would go well. But Luke should've recognized the cover-up...Bo was actually terrified, and had been trying to mask it all week with his ego. Luke was hurt that his cousin didn't feel like he could voice his fears to him. But then again, he should've noticed._

_After a few more minutes of dry heaves, Bo finally albeit shakily straightened up and turned around. He averted his eyes from Luke's concerned and searching gaze, and pushed past him to get to the sink. _

"_Bo..." Luke began, walking over to stand next to the younger boy. "Bo, ya should've told me ya was sick," he gently chided, knowing full well that Bo wasn't sick, but playing dumb for the sake of the boy's pride. _

"_I ain't sick, Luke," Bo admitted, slight tremble evident in his voice as he washed his face and hands in the sink. After a moment of silence, Luke decided they didn't have time to beat around the bush._

"_You nervous?" he posed it as a question. Bo just nodded, only hesitating for a moment. As Bo turned to grab a paper towel to wipe his face, Luke put a hand on his back._

"_You're gonna do fine. I'll be right there with ya. That's what the headpieces are for," he said, speaking of the microphones the driver and head pit crew wear to communicate during the race._

"_I know..." Bo replied._

"_Bo, you are gonna do fine. Win or lose, it's gonna be okay. You just get out there and drive like ya would for any other race. Heck, the only difference is this track is a little nicer." This last comment elicited a chuckle from the younger boy, which Luke was grateful for. "You can do this; I know ya can," he reiterated, taking Bo by the shoulders and making him face him. _

"_Are ya alright now?" Bo nodded. He was still nervous, but a little encouragement from his cousin was enough to alleviate many of his fears. "Okay then, let's get outta here. We got a race to win."_

_As they neared the entrance to the racing track, Bo turned to Luke. "You ain't nervous at all?" Luke shook his head. _

"_Shoot, I ain't the one drivin'."_

_Just then from out of nowhere, a body slammed Bo up against the concrete wall, his elbow digging into the boy's chest. Luke reacted instantly, yanking the big man back by the shoulders and roughly throwing him to the ground._

"_You alright?" Luke asked, turning to make sure his young cousin was uninjured. Bo nodded, walking over to stand next to Luke with clenched fists. _

"_Vinny," he growled, eyes sparking as he stared down at the man who'd attacked him. Luke, trying to de-escalate the situation, put a calming hand on Bo's arm and stepped forward._

"_Hey, we don't want no trouble Vinny. We's just here to race."_

"_Yeah, you're here to race all right... hayseed there stole my girl! And I'm gonna make him pay!" shouted Vinny, pointing an angry finger in Bo's direction. Both boys tensed as Vinny made a move to charge them again, but relaxed as the members of Vinny's pit crew heard the commotion, and came running over to subdue him. _

"_Vinny! Save it for the racetrack, man!" a smaller man, obviously head of Vinny's pit crew, shouted. The big man seemed to calm at these words, breaking free of the arms holding him back and stalking over to where the boys stood. Glaring straight into Bo's eyes, he spoke in a menacing voice._

"_You're gonna lose this race, plowboy. I'm gonna make you regret ever coming to NASCAR."_

_As he stormed off, Luke swallowed and turned to Bo._

"_Okay...now I'm a little nervous."_

* * *

Author's Note: Okay…I know I took forever to update…but please, please, please feed the muse!! Any comments/criticism are welcome and encouraged. Thanks to those who emailed me reminding me/pleading for an update…y'all kept me going. What can I say? College life is crazy busy. I promise I'll update as soon as I can. Thanks to all those who review!!! 


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: I'm back from the brink of extinction with this story. I hope y'all forgive me. A thousand apologies.

Anyway, I need to place an **important disclaimer** here due to where the plot is going in this story: I have nothing against NASCAR, and know nothing about NASCAR. I am simply using the title. This story is purely fiction, and all the characters (except for the Dukes) are purely from my imagination. I mean no harm or offense.

Also, just so you know, everything in italics happened in the past, and everything else happens in the present.

That being said, enjoy. :-)

Chapter 7: The Dark Side

* * *

"_Okay...now I'm a little nervous," Luke swallowed as he watched Vinny stalk off with the members of his pit crew._

"_Yeah, well forget about him. I'll make him eat his words after I win this thing," Bo replied, fierce determinism in his voice. Luke had to grin, somewhat relieved that his cocky cousin had regained control and replaced the nervous Bo he'd found back in the men's room._

"_Well we'd best get goin' or we ain't even gonna make the startin' line on time," Luke reminded the blonde boy, and they jogged the rest of the way back to the pit._

* * *

"_That was real stupid, Vinny," Marshall said as he helped the bigger man into his racecar. _

"_Hey, did I ask for your opinion? Just get me strapped in." Marshall sighed as tightened the seatbelt around the man. Vinny was tolerable because he paid well...very well, in fact, for everything he wanted. But he had the personality of cactus. _

"_Did you take care of everything?" Vinny asked, shooting Marshall a searching glance. Marshall nodded._

"_Everything's set, as usual, boss."_

* * *

_Back in the boys' pit, Luke was giving Bo a few last minute instructions before the race began. _

"_Alright, now remember that ya don't got to get ahead right away—wait a few laps so ya can get a feel for the track. Keep away from the wall unless I tell ya otherwise. Always pass on the inside. And if anything feels shaky or starts smokin', get back here right away, don't try to wait it out." Luke's words were spilling out faster than Bo was able to comprehend them, and he put up a gloved hand to silence the older boy._

"_Luke, I got this."_

_Luke exhaled loudly, then smiled and grabbed Bo's hand, squeezing firmly._

"_Let's do it." He stepped away from the General, and watched as the other pit crew members pushed the vehicle onto the track. _

_Bo gripped the steering wheel and wiggled a bit in his seat, that is, as much as one could wiggle while being strapped in so securely. 'It'd take a Houdini to get out of here,' Bo thought with a chuckle as he watched the flagman take his place next to the track. _

_It seemed like hours, but it was only minutes before the gun finally went off and the flag waved green. With a rush of adrenaline Bo was off, flooring the gas and watching the other cars bob and weave in front of him. It only took him one lap to get a feel for things, and pretty soon he and the car were as one, dancing around other cars and flying about the track at nearly 180 mph. Solely concentrated on one objective: the finish line. _

"_Yeeeehaaaww!" Bo shouted after passing his first car. It was then that he knew without a shadow of a doubt—this was what he was created for._

_It was around lap 5 that there arose some trouble. Bo was in 8__th__ place, doing exceedingly well for a first-timer, when he noticed the two cars in front of him bang into each other. From his position on the sidelines, Luke saw it too, and warned Bo immediately. _

"_Bo, stay away from those guys, one of 'em is Vinny."_

"_You don't gotta tell me twice, cousin," Bo said, letting off the gas bit and inching to the inside. _

_No sooner had he gotten a safe distance from the two vehicles, when the one closest to him began to smoke. Unable to see, the driver lost control of the car, and swerved toward the General Lee._

"_Bo!" Luke shouted into the microphone. Bo slammed on his brakes and swerved to the left, glancing back to see the other car slam into the wall and burst into flame. Fighting to regain control of the General after swerving so wildly at such a high speed, Bo nearly knocked into the other cars that were racing past. _

"_Come on, General," he forced through clenched teeth. Jerking the wheel, he finally got the car realigned on the track._

"_I got it, Luke," he managed to get out as he hit the gas and forged back into the race. The stunt had cost him though, as he was now in 12__th__ place. _

_Back in the pit, Luke let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He knew that racing would be dangerous, but he didn't expect to feel this helpless. If anything did ever happen to Bo, there would be nothing Luke could do but watch from the sidelines. The thought terrified him, but he swallowed his emotions. Now was not the time. Bo still had to finish the race. _

* * *

"So did you win?" Glenn asked, once again bringing Luke back to the present.

"Well, we came in 5th, which is just as good, considering it was our first NASCAR race," Luke replied. "But that ain't the point."

"Yeah, tell him what happened after that," Bo urged, looking up as Cooter brought over a plate of drinks.

"Thanks, Coot," Luke said, feeling a little guilty for forgetting about his friend, who'd been standing nearby the whole time. "Ya can pull up a chair if ya want."

"Naw thanks Lucas Dukas, but I gotta head back to the garage. I got to finish workin' on Roscoe's car from when you boys made a mess of it last week. I'll catch y'all later."

"Later Cooter," Bo called as the mechanic walked away.

Taking a long swallow of his drink, Luke wiped his mouth on his sleeve before continuing...

* * *

_As he came around the next lap Bo passed the accident, and thought he recognized the charred vehicle through the smoke. _

"_Luke, was that Tommy's car??" Bo asked worriedly. _

_Tommy Rodgers and his head mechanic, Dalton Price, had become good friends with the Duke boys over the past few months. They were country boys themselves, from the backwoods of Pennsylvania, and had been with NASCAR for 4 years. They took the boys under their wings, and gave them timeless advice about the do's and don'ts of racing in NASCAR. _

_A sinking feeling rose in Luke's gut. _

"_Yeah, I think it was Bo. But there's nothin' we can do right now but finish the race." _

_Bo replied with steely resolve in his voice when he said, "If Tommy's hurt bad, Vinny Hayes is gonna pay."_

"_Relax Bo; things like this happen all the time on the track. Don't jump to conclusions. Just keep your head clear an' finish this thing."_

_Bo didn't reply, just kicked it up a gear and maneuvered through the collage of racecars until he was tailing Vinny's bumper, in 6__th__ place. Inching forward, he lightly rear-ended the car in front of him, getting the driver's attention. _

"_Bo..." He heard Luke call his name, but he ignored it, unable to think of anything but the image of Tommy's burning car smashed into the wall. _

_Sensing that Bo was trying to pass, Vinny swerved in whichever direction Bo did, so that he was unable to get by. Bo just chuckled._

"_Come on, General; let's show this goon how to drive."_

_Speeding up until the needle on the speedometer was as high as it would go, Bo once again rear-ended Vinny's car, with more force this time, causing the man to swerve. In one fluid motion, Bo took his opening and flew past Vinny, finishing in 5__th__ place. _

_Due to his wild swerving, Vinny finished in 11__th__ place, and was furious. He looked for Bo after the race, but the boys had rushed off to the hospital after Dalton, not even sticking around for the pictures and interviews. _

* * *

"_How is he?" Bo asked, bursting through the ER doors and rushing up to Dalton in the waiting room._

"_I-I don't know...I didn't even see him before they took him in the ambulance," Dalton said with a shake of his head. Luke put a hand on the young man's shoulder. Dalton had always personified a pillar of strength and self-assurance. His unruly light-brown curls framed gray-green eyes that sparked with wisdom and intensity. If it weren't for the curls, Dalton would look much older than his 30 years. Just 4 years older than Luke, and now, with those eyes wide and full of fear, he suddenly looked as young as Bo. _

_They stayed at the hospital for nearly 4 hours before a doctor came out to them. Bo had fallen asleep in one of the chairs next to Dalton and Luke reached around and shook his shoulder to wake him. _

_Standing, Dalton asked, "How is he?"_

_The doctor sighed. "I'm afraid he's in a bad way. He has third degree burns on 20 of his body, mostly his legs. If they become infected, we might have to amputate. We're also worried about his head injury, which was quite severe. All his other injuries are secondary to the burns and the head trauma. Right now he's in a coma. We're gonna do everything we can, but I'll be honest with you, things aren't looking too hopeful right now."_

_The doctor walked away slowly as shocked silence filled the waiting room. _

"_Oh my God," Dalton whispered, sinking into his chair and covering his face with his hands. "What am I going to tell his wife Maggie?" _

"_Does she know?" Luke asked, his voice flat._

_Dalton nodded, not looking up. "All she knows is that there was an accident. My wife's bringing her now. They're on their way. Oh Lord, what if Tommy doesn't make it? What am I gonna tell her?"_

_Bo reached over and put his hand on Dalton's back, but said nothing. He didn't know what to say._

_Luke spoke in voice just above a whisper, "All we can do right now is pray. Let the Good Lord take care of the rest." _

_The three boys sat silently, lost in their own thoughts and prayers as they waited for the women to arrive._

_Three days after the race, the boys had returned to their hotel, there being nothing they could do at the hospital. The air was heavy with the waiting, and it was killing them to see Dalton so shaken and Tommy's wife an emotional wreck. Receiving their first check from winning 5__th__ place didn't even faze them, even though it was more money than they'd ever held in their hands. They sent most of it home to Uncle Jesse and Daisy, along with a short letter, explaining the situation. The boys didn't really talk to each other about their fears for their friend. Neither of them was ready to. _

_It was about 4 in the afternoon when the phone rang. Bo, who'd been flipping aimlessly through the channels on the little TV, answered it on the second ring._

"_Hello? Oh hey Dalton. Yeah, how's he doin'? Oh. Okay. Yeah, we'll be right there. Bye now." Hanging up, Bo turned to Luke with troubled eyes._

"_That was Dalton. He said Tommy ain't doin' too good. He wants us over there. Says he has to tell us somethin' and can't do it over the phone."_

_Nodding, Luke grabbed his jean jacket off the chair and picked up the keys from off the desk. _

"_Let's go."_

* * *

_At the hospital, the boys walked into Tommy's room, hearts skipping a beat when they found Maggie sitting next to the bed, weeping. Dalton's wife Carol was comforting her, and Dalton...he looked about ready to kill somebody. _

"_Dalton?" Luke asked, tensing at the fierceness in his friend's eyes. _

"_Follow me," Dalton said brusquely, walking out the door and down the hall to a lounge._

_Shutting the door behind them, he walked over to the window and stood with his arms crossed, looking out over the parking lot._

"_Dalton, what's goin' on?" Luke prodded gently._

"_The...doctors...they don't think Tommy's gonna make it." The boys remained silent, just staring at Dalton's back._

"_Heck, but that ain't the half of it," Dalton continued. "Some guys from our pit crew were inspecting the car yesterday—that is, what's left of it. They called me down to check it out 'cuz something looked funny. So I went. An' guess what I found? Somebody had tampered with the engine. Loosened a few caps and screws, and put a clean slit in the oil line. That's why the dang thing burned so bad for so long. It wasn't an accident."_

_Luke answered carefully, wary of the rage coursing through Dalton's body._

"_Dalton...are you sure? The car was so badly wrecked...maybe it was just..."_

"_No!" Dalton whirled around, marching toward Luke. Luke flinched, expecting to be hit, but instead Dalton whipped a section of the oil line out of his pocket and shoved in Luke's face. "See for yourself."_

_Examining the piece of tube, Luke saw the small slit Dalton had been talking about. Swallowing hard, he handed it back and put his hands in his pockets._

"_Have you told anybody? The cops?"_

_Dalton shook his head, running a shaky hand through his hair. "What would I say? I ain't got no proof of a suspect'. Besides, the cops in this town know better than to try an' take down racecar drivers. They're paid well to keep their noses in their business."_

"_What are you talkin' about?" Bo demanded._

"_I know who did this," Dalton said, clenching the oil tube in his fist. "It's happened before. We all know how it works. Ya start doin' well in the circuit, an' then the next thing ya know something happens. A car malfunctions during a race. A bad wreck. An' guess who's always around when these things happen? Who always manages to come out in the top 5 whenever it happens? Unless of course, ya make some sort of deal with them. Agree to let them come in ahead of ya if they let you place. An' then you're safe. That is, until ya get to the point where ya want to play it straight. Then you're stuck between a rock and hard place."_

_Luke's brow furrowed. "What in the world...?" Dalton grinned wryly at their shocked and confused expressions. _

"_That's right boys. Welcome to the dark side of NASCAR."_

TBC….

A/N: Again…I have nothing against NASCAR. I don't even watch it. I'm making all of this up for the sake of a good plot. Please do not take offense. But please do tell me what you think. :-)


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note**: I must apologize.

It has been 2 years and 9 months since I've touched this story. In that span of time, I have moved on to reading other fandoms, though I still go back and reread some of my favorite DOH fics. I have not dropped off the face of the earth—I've been in college, doing college-y things. And now I'm about to graduate, so I have time on my hands. (Well…technically I _shouldn't_ have time on my hands, but the muse can be very powerful). I recently started up a new story for a different fandom, and then I came across this old one, which I'd promised I would finish. Since I actually remember where I was planning on taking it, and since I had so many reviews on this story, I am now finishing what I started over 2 years ago.

This is dedicated to all of the authors I used to follow and love in this fandom. Specifically Hazzardhusker, Jordyn D., Graywolf84, and Flynne. Several of your stories are listed in my favorites, and I go back and read them from time to time with great pleasure.

This is also dedicated to mrslukeduke, who PM-ed me in September of '09, making me feel guilty about not finishing the story, and Foreverwolf, who left a review mentioning the "bad habit" of abandoning stories. I always told myself I wouldn't be that kind of author, and now I'm keeping good to my word.

This is for you all. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer**: I didn't own the Dukes or the General over 2 years ago, and I still don't own them today. Shame.

**Warning: **This chapter deals will some dark subject matter, such as suicide. It is not graphic, but it is filled with angst. I have endeavored to be honest, believable, and respectful with where I'm taking this story, without being overly dramatic. However I wanted to post this warning to be safe. If I fail at any of those three goals, please let me know.

**Chapter 8**: Conspiracies

* * *

"_What are you talkin' about?" Bo demanded._

"_I know who did this," Dalton said, clenching the oil tube in his fist. "It's happened before. We all know how it works. Ya start doin' well in the circuit, an' then the next thing ya know something happens. A car malfunctions during a race. A bad wreck. An' guess who's always around when these things happen? Who always manages to come out in the top 5 whenever it happens? Unless of course, ya make some sort of deal with them. Agree to let them come in ahead of ya if they let you place. An' then you're safe. That is, until ya get to the point where ya want to play it straight. Then you're stuck between a rock and hard place."_

_Luke's brow furrowed. "What in the world...?" Dalton grinned wryly at their shocked and confused expressions. _

"_That's right boys. Welcome to the dark side of NASCAR."_

* * *

"Wait a minute," Glenn interrupted suddenly. "What did Hayes and Woodruff have against these other two racers?"

"You mean you don't know?" Luke asked, surprised that the FBI agent, who'd dug up so much information on their past, hadn't already known about this connection.

"All I have is the list and the weapons my men found in their trailers. There was no Tommy Rodgers or Dalton Price on the list."

The air was heavy with silence for a moment, before Luke finally spoke.

"Vinny Hayes is responsible for more deaths than are on that list. He paid Marshall Woodruff to do his dirty work."

"Do you have proof?" Glenn inquired in a low tone.

"Proof," Luke repeated, his voice having taken on a bitter tinge. "At one time we had all the proof in the world. It didn't do a damn bit of good."

"I don't understand," Glenn replied.

Luke exhaled slowly, puffs of air blowing wayward coffee-colored curls off of his forehead.

"Mr. Hawkins," he said slowly, "Those other deaths mighta been people Vinny hated because of their success in NASCAR. But he's after us for an entirely different reason."

"It's Lisa, sir," Bo clarified. "Vinny wants revenge on us 'cause of Lisa."

* * *

"_So what do we do now, Luke?" Bo asked as they drove back to their apartment. There'd been nothing they could do at the hospital. Tommy had seemed to be holding his own, and the boys had needed time to think about this new turn of events, so they left just a few hours after talking with Dalton. _

"_I don't know. Somethin' ain't right though. I mean, what did Vinny ever have against Tommy or Dalton?"_

_Bo shrugged. "Danged if I know. Don't seem like it would take much to get on that Vinny's bad side though."_

_Luke ignored the comment, and continued to think aloud, the wheels turning in his brain. _

"_Dalton mentioned that these kind of accidents have happened before, to people who've been a threat to Vinny's standing in the races."_

"_Yeah, so?" Bo asked, not following the train of thought._

"_So, Tommy's good, but he ain't that good. They've only ended up in the top 5 spots in handful of races. They ain't competitive enough for Vinny to need use such drastic means to get rid of 'em."_

"_So it _was_ an accident?" Bo submitted, frowning. _

"_I don't think so," Luke replied thoughtfully. "I think there's more goin' on here than we think."_

_When they arrived back at the apartment, Lisa met them at the door. _

"_Oh thank God," she cried when they walked in. "Bo, I need to talk to you!"_

"_What's wrong, Lisa?" Bo asked, immediately concerned at the brokenness in her voice. _

"_You boys are in big trouble," she said, eyes wide with fright. "Especially you, Bo."_

_Bo's eyes narrowed. "What are you talkin' about?"_

"_Today I went into town to buy groceries. And Vinny found me. I tried to get away, but he trapped me in the frozen section where there weren't any customers. He said that if I didn't go back to him, he'd see to it that your NASCAR career would be over."_

_Blue eyes clashed with brown as the cousins shared a look. _

"_You can't go back to him, Lisa," Bo said in a stern tone. _

"_You don't understand, Bo!" She cried, voice rising in near-hysteria. "He admitted to rigging Tommy's car! He said that Marshall had made a mistake, but it wouldn't be repeated!"_

"_What do you mean, he made a mistake?" Luke demanded, face drawn into a scowl. _

"_Think about it, Luke," she explained hastily. "They'd have to break into the garage at night in order to tamper with a car and not get caught. Marshall couldn't turn on the lights though, because there'd be too much risk of being seen. Tommy must have parked his car in the spot where the General Lee usually is—that's how the cars were mixed up."_

_Bo's eyes went wide. He turned to his cousin. "Luke, we gotta do somethin'."_

_Luke went over and grabbed the phone off its mount on the nearby wall. _

"_What are you doing?" Lisa demanded._

"_I'm calling the police. Gonna tell 'em that Vinny violated his restraining order. And you're gonna tell 'em what he told you about Tommy."_

"_Luke, you can't do that! He'll just get out of jail again!" Lisa cried, running to the phone and slapping her hand over the numbered dial. _

"_Well, just what do you suggest we do then?" Luke responded irritably. _

_Lisa's face was mixture of fear, guilt, and regret. "I'll have to go back to him."_

"_No way!" Bo responded angrily. _

"_Bo's right, honey. Vinny's dangerous. We need to call the police," Luke tried to reason with her. _

"_You don't understand," she insisted, her voice taking on a desperate tone. "It's my fault that Tommy's in the hospital right now, don't you see? All this is because I left Vinny. It isn't worth it. It isn't worth it!" _

_She buried her head in her hands and sank to the floor, wracked with silent sobs. _

"_Lisa…" Bo knelt down to comfort her, throwing Luke a helpless look. _

_Neither one of them knew what to do at this point. The Duke boys had never dealt with anything, or anyone, as sinister as this. _

_They were out of their league, and over their heads. And it was only to get worse. _

* * *

It was a few moments before Bo realized that his cousin had stopped talking. He too, had gotten lost in the memories they'd tried so hard to bury.

Now it was coming back to haunt them.

"What happened to Lisa?" Glenn asked softly, knowing that he wouldn't like the answer.

Luke shook his head slowly. It had been over a two years, and yet now, recalling the events, it seemed like yesterday. The grief twisted in his gut, and for a moment he felt nauseas welling in his stomach.

He glanced at his younger cousin, who was staring at him with heartrending blue eyes.

It took a moment before Bo realized that the brunette was silently asking his permission to continue the grim tale, and for once he was grateful for Luke's fierce protectiveness of him, not only physically, but emotionally.

"It's okay, Cuz'. It's time to put their ghosts to rest," he said, voice barely above a whisper.

And so for the first time, Luke told another soul about the night he and Bo lost what was left of their innocence.

* * *

_Lisa had cried herself to sleep in Bo's arms. He carried her to her room and laid her on the bed, pulling the heavy quilt up to her shoulders and brushing a loose strand of hair off of her tear-stained cheek. _

_For some reason he couldn't put his finger on, Bo felt a sudden gut-instinction telling him that he shouldn't leave her alone, that something wasn't right. However, he figured he was just worried because he had feelings for her. Reason was urging him to get back to Luke so they could think up some sort of way out of this mess, and eventually (for once) reason won out. _

_He stood and watched her sleep for a few moments before leaving and shutting the door quietly behind him. _

"_Luke, we gotta do somethin'."_

"_You've said that already, cousin," Luke shot back. He was standing in the kitchen, leaning up against the counter with his arms crossed around his torso._

"_You don't understand Luke, I'm worried about Lisa." _

"_She's understandably upset," Luke replied, exasperated. He shook his head. "What we need to do is call the authorities. I should've done it an hour ago."_

_Just then, the telephone rang. _

"_Speak of the devil," Bo commented wryly as Luke picked up the receiver._

"_Hello? Dalton? It's Luke. Oh…_No_." _

_The 'no' was said with such finality, such disbelief, that Bo just walked over to his cousin and put a hand on his shoulder. _

_He knew what the phone call meant long before Luke hung up._

"_Tommy's dead, Bo. He just…couldn't hold on any longer, I guess."_

_Luke rubbed a hand over suspiciously bright sapphire eyes. "God…his poor wife. And Dalton…he was a wreck over the phone."_

"_Luke…" Bo's voice shook. "What. Are. We. Gonna. Do."_

_After a long moment, Luke straightened and squared his shoulders. Turning to Bo with fire in his eyes, he said, "We're gonna go to the police. Vinny Hayes is gonna go down for murder, and Marshall for bein' an accessory."_

* * *

"So you went to the police, then," Glenn cut in. "What did they do?"

"Well, we spent the rest of the night down at the police station givin' statements," Luke explained. "They didn't believe us at first. Said accidents happen all the time in NASCAR, and they weren't about to arrest a race car driver and risk the negative publicity just on our word."

"So we told them about Lisa," he continued. "And an officer went back to the apartment with us to get her statement."

* * *

_Bo yawned heavily upon entering the apartment. It had been a long, horrible day. Nearly 1 a.m. and he wouldn't be seeing his bed anytime soon at this rate. _

"_She's probably sleepin', Luke," he mentioned. _

"_You all share this apartment?" The officer asked, his gaze wandering about. _

"_Yes sir, just until Lisa can get enough money together for a place of her own," Bo explained. _

"_I'm gonna go wake her," Luke announced, heading back to the girl's room. He was surprised to find the door locked. _

"_Bo, did you accidently lock this thing on your way out?" He called back to the living room. _

"_No, maybe Lisa woke up and locked it," Bo said, heading for the kitchen toward the back of the apartment. "I'm gonna grab somethin' to eat."_

"_Lisa?" Luke called through the door. No answer._

"_Lisa?" He called a little louder, rattling the door handle for emphasis. _

_Stumped, he walked into the kitchen where Bo was standing, munching on an apple._

"_Whatchya lookin' for?" He asked as the older boy began rummaging through several different drawers. _

"_Spare key," Luke said absentmindedly. Then, "Aha—found it."_

_The officer was still standing in the living room, which happened to be adjacent to the Lisa's bedroom. _

"_Got the key here," Luke told him as he went to unlock the door. _

"_No rush," the officer kindly assured. _

_A swift turn of the wrist and the door was open, dim lighting causing Luke to squint. "Lisa?" _

_First glance saw that she was in fact, not in bed. _

_Second glance noticed the bottle of pills strewn about on the floor._

_Third glance made Luke gasp in horror and run toward the still body laying next to the bed. _

_The officer, sensing something amiss, ran after Luke, and after checking the young woman for a pulse, immediately began performing CPR. _

"_Call an ambulance," he ordered. _

_As Luke raced back to the doorway, he nearly collided with his younger cousin. _

"_Bo!"_

"_Luke, what the heck is goin' on?" _

"_Bo, listen to me, I don't want you goin' in that room," Luke pleaded, gripping the younger boy's arm. _

"_Why not?" Bo demanded, voice hardened with barely-concealed fear._

"_Because Bo—trust me. Just come with me to the kitchen."_

"_No," the blonde boy shrugged Luke off easily and tried to push past him._

"_Bo please—"_

"_Luke stop it—"_

"_I don't want you to—"_

"_You better let me by—"_

"_You to see her like that—"_

"_Now Lukas, let me by!" Bo shouted, bodily shoving Luke aside._

_Luke stumbled into the wall, defeated. Swallowing down his failure, he raced to the phone and dialed 911. _

_In his heart though, he knew it was too late._

* * *

Glenn waited patiently as both boys sat quietly, lost in their own private hells.

Each of them had suffered internally from the memories of that awful day, and the double tragedy of losing both Tommy and Lisa.

For Luke it was a personal failure. His mind assaulted him with 'if onlys'. If only he'd called the police sooner. If only he'd done more, thought harder, reacted quicker. He'd failed to protect Lisa, and in doing so, failed to protect his younger cousin.

He had swallowed down the guilt of that day—stuffed it into a box and buried deep in the recesses of his soul. Yet his mind rarely let him forget. Luke had been susceptible to terrible nightmares ever since the War, and for months after that dark day, he'd wake up at night in a cold sweat, shaking, sometimes even sobbing. Most of the nightmares featured Bo in Tommy's place, crashing into the wall due to the tampered oil line, lying cold and still in a hospital bed, and finally succumbing to his injuries, leaving Luke alone and wracked with grief.

For Bo it was a kind of anguish he had never before experienced, and did not comprehend. He'd had feelings for Lisa, and the loss was palpable. But even more gut-wrenching was the knowledge that she had seen suicide as her only way out of a difficult situation. It left him feeling hollow inside. She had seemed like such a sweet girl—now he wondered if he ever really knew her at all. For weeks after her death, he walked around in a daze, sometimes so lost within himself that he could not even drive the General Lee.

"We dropped out of all our scheduled races after that," Luke explained quietly. "We just couldn't do it anymore."

He paused for a moment, then lifted a despondent gaze up toward the FBI agent.

"The worst part about it was, without her testimony, we had nothin' to go up against Vinny. It was all just hearsay and speculation."

"What about the split in the oil line that Dalton showed you?" asked Glenn.

Luke shook his head sadly. "No prints. No proof. It went down in the records as an accident."

Glenn sighed heavily, then said, "I'm sorry boys. I really am."

Sorry. Such a meaningless word. A word incapable of conveying true depths of remorse.

They had found a piece of paper lying atop one of the pillows that night, a hastily scribbled note of apology.

'_Bo and Luke. I heard about Tommy. It was my fault. I'm sorry. –Lisa'_

Lisa had been more fragile than they could have ever known.

They figured she must have been listening through the door when they found out about Tommy's passing, and could not take the misplaced guilt and hopelessness that overtook her.

The coroner had pronounced her death in the apartment, with a shell-shocked Bo and Luke standing in the background. A small service was held a few days later at the cemetery—the Duke boys kept their distance.

They numbly attended Tommy's funeral a day later.

* * *

"_Why?" Bo asked brokenly, his head hidden in the shoulder of his older cousin's flannel shirt. "I don't understand Luke—she didn't give us a chance to help her."_

_Luke spoke soft and slow, his left hand rubbing comforting circles across his cousin's back. "I don't think she wanted to be helped, Bo. She was too afraid."_

"_If she just woulda waited a little longer…" Bo sobbed. _

"_Ya can't force people to hope, Bo. Sometimes they just give up. There was nothin' you coulda done."_

* * *

They left NASCAR, left the apartment, left everything they'd worked for. Giving Jesse some excuse about needing special repairs on the General Lee, they took a chunk of their last paycheck, packed up their meager belongings, and headed as far away from Daytona as the General could take them.

Three months later, they realized that what they really needed in order to heal was the texture of the dust from old dirt roads, the sound of the siren on Roscoe's squad car, the taste of a cold beer at the Boar's Nest, the smell of sweat after a long hard day working the fields, the warmth of Daisy's smile, and the tender wisdom in Uncle Jesse's eyes.

They came home, leaving the world of racing and failure behind.

They'd never told another soul about Vinny, Tommy, or Lisa, until now.

"So, Vinny blames you for Lisa's death?" Glenn asked, a frown creasing his brow.

"For some twisted reason, yeah. One of the men on his pit crew phoned us one night and told us as much," Luke explained.

"An' now he's finally tracked us down," Bo added.

"Well, your story was certainly far more involved than I had expected. Vinny Hayes has committed heinous crimes, and he must be stopped. I'm sure you both want him to come to justice just as much, if not more, than I do," Glenn said sincerely.

"You bet," Luke responded tersely, the memories still fresh on his mind.

"I have a plan. But it's risky. Like I said before, it is obvious that Hayes and Woodruff will not stop until you both are dead, and that puts your family at risk as well. The plan I have will require a great deal of inner strength."

"You said you wanna use us as bait?" Bo asked, remembering an earlier part of the conversation. "How?"

Glancing around the restaurant to make sure the few patrons that were around were not paying attention, he leaned forward and produced two vials of blue liquid from his coat pocket.

"This, gentlemen, is the plan."

"What is it?" Bo asked, eyeing the vials curiously.

"It's an experimental compound developed by the CIA. It causes the body's main functions to slow to the point where it imitates death."

Luke glared at him sharply. "Just what _is_ your plan?"

**Balladeer**: _Funny, I'm wonderin' the same dang thing._

* * *

**A/N**: This chapter was difficult to write. I worry that it has been so long that my writing sounds out of character. Also, I worry that this chapter does not fit with the preceding ones.

Please review and let me know how I did.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **I don't own DOH, and don't intend to profit from this story.

**Warning: **I think there's a bad word in here. :P

**Author's Note**: I can't believe this is it! The final chapter! :)

I don't want to cast a negative pallor over this story or anything, but writing is often cathartic, just as truth and confession are good for the soul.

What follows is the story behind the story, which you may wish to read before getting to the story itself.

So…let's talk about life imitating art. The last chapter I wrote for this story was posted back in February, 2010. Back then, I had every intention of writing the final chapter before May. Yet just a few weeks after writing the chapter in which my fictional character "Lisa" took her life, a real-life friend of mine committed suicide. It was a confusing, gut-wrenching, traumatic experience that I hope I never go through again. Before that day in April, I'd never experienced real grief, much less a loss of that kind…but I'd written about it, here. It's interesting to think about how one can write about something one does not understand. At any rate, I didn't want to finish this after what happened, because I felt my story about Bo and Lisa too closely resembled my real-life situation with my friend. It was poor timing mixed with a lot of pain and superstition on my part. Since then I've written other stories, I just haven't been able to come back to this one. I even considered discontinuing it altogether. Now though, time has passed, and I want to finish.

Once again, this is dedicated to my faithful readers, and especially, my faithful reviewers.

Please excuse any mistakes and or liberties I've taken in this chapter - I apologize ahead of time.

**Chapter 9**: Finale

* * *

"This, gentlemen, is the plan."

"What is it?" Bo asked, eyeing the vials curiously.

"It's an experimental compound developed by the CIA. It causes the body's main functions to slow to the point where it imitates death."

Luke glared at him sharply. "Just what _is_ your plan?"

**Balladeer**: _Funny, I'm wonderin' the same dang thing._

_

* * *

_"Are we really gonna do this?" Bo asked in a voice uncharacteristically low, his eyes hooded as he stared at the motionless hands lying in his lap.

"Glenn thinks he can get a confession out of Vinny and Marshall if they think we're dead," Luke responded with a shrug. "I think it's fair to say we've run out of other options at this point."

"I know, Luke, it's just…it's an awful big risk we're takin' here. I just wanna make sure it ain't all gonna be for nothin', you know?"

The chill of the pre-dawn air sent ripples of goosebumps across his arms, and the youngest Duke suppressed a shiver as he listened to the resigned sigh of his older cousin.

Luke turned, his eyes flashing a vibrant blue in the dark. "You don't have to do this, Bo."

The blonde's head shot up, staring at the older boy in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

Luke ran a hand roughly through his hair. "I mean…you're right. What if it don't work? Maybe it'd be better if you stayed behind, you know – in case somethin' goes wrong…."

"You know, you gotta lot of nerve even suggesting that, Lukas!" Bo exploded, pointing an angry finger in cousin's face.

Luke threw up his hands in defense. "Now listen, all I'm sayin' is that maybe it ain't the smartest thing in the world to have both of us in this car. I mean, we gotta think about Uncle Jesse and Daisy."

"Uncle Jesse told us to do what we had to do," Bo replied.

"Yeah, but maybe it ain't worth it for him to lose both of us – I mean – it'd kill him, Bo."

"So what, you'd just leave me behind?" Bo retorted indignantly.

"It ain't about leaving you behind, Bo…."

"Then just what is it, huh? You think I can't handle it?"

"No, that ain't it!" Luke sighed. "Look you're my cousin, this is a dangerous thing we're doin' and you obviously ain't sure about it…."

"Damn it, Luke will you quit tryin' to protect me!" Bo shouted suddenly, rendering his older cousin momentarily speechless.

Luke swallowed hard, turning back in his seat to stare resolutely out the windshield, his jaw clenched in frustration.

Bo took a deep breath to calm himself before speaking.

"I know it's dangerous, Luke – and yeah – I ain't sure about it. But I ain't a kid. I can make my own decisions. And I ain't gonna let you do this by yourself. Not this time. I can't."

Luke let out a shaky exhale, briefly closing his eyes. "Bo…."

"It's Lisa, Luke. That's why we gotta stop 'em. That's—that's why I'm doin' this; for Lisa. Not for the dang FBI…not for us…but for her."

He paused, his throat working to choke out the rest of his speech. "This…it's gotta work, Luke. We can't screw this one up."

Luke nodded, reaching over to give the younger man's shoulder a quick squeeze before returning the hand to rest languidly against the passenger window.

He didn't trust himself to speak at first, the lump in his throat temporarily strangling his vocal chords. Even then, all he could say was, "I know, cousin. I know."

The boys' brooding thoughts were interrupted by the familiar crackle of the CB radio.

"_This is the Anglerman calling Nightcrawler One and Two, do you read?"_

"That's Glenn," Luke announced unnecessarily, jerking the receiver up to his lips.

"This here's Nightcrawler One, we copy."

"_Are you in position?"_

"Ten-four, right where you said."

"_Good. I've been watchin' these hawgs all night. It's all slopped-up over here."_

"Slopped up?" Bo mouthed, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"He means they're drunk. Which means everything's going according to plan," Luke replied grimly, once again lifting the CB receiver in his hand.

"Thanks for the heads-up, Anglerman. Just let us know when those lunkers start heading downstream."

"_Ten-four, Nightcrawler. Anglerman out."_

Bo let out the tiniest of chuckles, and Luke gave him a questioning look as he returned the receiver to its holder next to the radio.

"I didn't know Glenn was into bass fishin'."

Luke's mouth quirked up in a grin.

"Yeah, considerin' he ain't a country boy, he's pretty knowledgeable."

"Considerin' he's the FBI, he's pretty knowledgeable," Bo replied, as Luke snickered at the dig.

It felt good to laugh.

But silence all too quickly fell upon them again, and Luke shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"You sure you wanna drive?"

Bo rolled his eyes. "Yes, Luke. I'm sure I wanna drive."

Luke waited a moment, a shadow of a grin passing over his features.

"Well…I guess you _are _better at wreckin' cars…."

Bo's eyes widened. "Now just what is that supposed to mean?"

Luke could not stifle his laughter. "Nothing – I'm just teasin'."

Just as a retort was forming on Bo's tongue, the CB crackled to life once again.

"_This here's the Anglerman calling Nightcrawler One. Looks like those lunkers are already heading your way. They should be up in your location in about ten minutes. Do you copy?"_

"Ten-four, Anglerman. We're ready for 'em," Luke responded.

"_Alright, then. I'll see you boys later. Godspeed."_

"That's received Anglerman, over and out."

Luke replaced the CB receiver and turned to Bo, exhaling loudly. "Well, you heard the man."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Bo replied, hastily reaching down to turn the ignition.

The General's engine surged to life with a roar as Bo's hands flexed anxiously around the wheel.

"You got the vials?" Luke asked quietly.

Bo gave a jerky nod, slipping his trembling fingers down to ease two tiny glass bottles out of his jeans pocket.

"They'll be turnin' on this road any minute," Luke said with resignation. "Last chance."

"I'm stayin'," Bo insisted stubbornly, handing one of the vials over to his cousin.

Each boy hesitated, the weight of the moment and their desperate decision evident in their facial expressions. The full realization of what they were risking felt heavy on their hearts.

"Luke…Lukas, I…." Bo began, but couldn't finish, his eyes articulating what his mouth could not. It might well have been the last time he ever saw his cousin alive.

"I know, Bo. Me too," Luke replied, echoing the sentiment.

Then, in two fluid motions, each boy simultaneously dropped their heads back to swallow the acidic liquid within the vials.

"I hear a car!" Luke exclaimed anxiously a moment later, tossing both his and his cousin's glass vials out of the window and into some nearby bushes.

The General Lee's tires squealed as Bo slammed the gears into 'drive' and pulled out into the center of the dust-covered Possom Creek Road.

It was just barely dawn when the dark-colored sedan came barreling up behind them.

* * *

"H-hey Vinny," a drunken Marshall Woodruff slurred from the passenger seat. "Ain't that the Duke boys' car?"

Vinny squinted through the windshield, his countenance darkening with anger.

"Yeah, that's them. What's say we teach those plowboys a lesson once and for all?"

Reluctantly, Marshall leaned forward and dug his fingers into dashboard as the car picked up speed, knowing no one could stop Vinny Hayes when he was in a mood like this.

* * *

"Here they come," Luke warned, his heart hammering against his chest from the adrenaline (or maybe it was from Glenn's drug?)

His head jerked forward violently with the first hit, as Vinny deliberately smashed the front of his car into the back of the General Lee.

Bo sped up a little, out of instinct, momentarily forgetting the purpose. They were _supposed_ to crash. If they timed it right, it would be a controlled wreck resulting in minor injuries at best.

The plan was to wait until Bo was beginning to feel the effects of the drug, then flip the General onto its hood – by the time the dust settled, both boys would be off in la-la land, presumably dead to the unwitting outsider.

A couple of Glenn's FBI cronies would act as paramedics at the scene, while a few of his other colleagues and a registered nurse would patch the boys up at an undisclosed location.

Glenn swore up and down that he knew Hayes and Woodruff wouldn't leave the county. They would want to stick around to revel in the damage they'd caused. Glenn would arrest them for vehicular manslaughter, then work them over until they confessed to the other murders. If all went well, Bo and Luke would be back at the family farm by sundown.

That's _if_ Bo timed it right.

The car hit them again, this time hard enough to nearly rip the wheel out of the younger Duke's white-knuckled grip.

'_This is crazy,'_ he thought frantically. _'We're gonna be killed!'_

"Luke!" he hollered, unable to keep the fear out of his voice.

"You can do it, Bo!" Luke shouted as he braced his right hand against the dashboard, his tone conveying absolute confidence in the fair-haired boy. Bo could only spare a glance, but his breath quickened at the sight of the pale, sickly pallor of his older cousin's skin.

The drug was quickly taking effect – Bo would have to flip the General soon.

Yet he hesitated, his every bodily impulse rejecting what his brain was screaming at him to do. It was as if his limbs were frozen with terror.

Bo was horrified to realize that he'd underestimated himself – there was no way in hell that he was going to be able to purposefully wreck this car.

He broke out in a cold sweat as the consequences of his failure flashed before him, hot tears pricking the back of his eyes. He was going to get his cousin killed, and maybe himself too.

They were fast approaching a sharp curve in the road, a small tree-lined gully on each side of the gravel-covered edges of tar and dirt.

A feeling of dread embedded itself in Bo's stomach. This was a dangerous spot to have an accident, planned or not.

Dust kicked up behind the tires as Bo slammed on the gas.

"Bo?" Luke shouted suddenly, his voice a hoarse mix of fear and concern.

The younger boy did not answer, so determined was he to just get past the curve.

Then, two things happened simultaneously, foiling his attempt.

First, Vinny increased to a dangerous speed, pulling alongside the back driver's side end of the General and giving it a forceful nudge.

Second, just as the orange race care began to fishtail violently, Bo was hit with a crippling dizzy-spell, causing him to loosen his grip on the wheel.

As the front tires of the General jerked to the left, the back passenger tire slipped in the light gravel lining along the edge of the road, beginning a backward decent into the gully.

Unbalanced and completely out of control, the General flipped several times before landing unceremoniously onto its hood and slamming front-first into the thick trunk of a oak tree.

The Sedan came to a swerving, screeching halt, both its occupants sobered by the shock of what had just occurred.

The morning had fallen suddenly and eerily quiet.

* * *

"They ain't movin' Vinny – maybe we should get an ambulance."

"An ambulance?" Vinny exclaimed heartily. "Hell! This is better'n I hoped. Serves those hayseeds right. I ain't callin' no ambulance."

"B-but Vinny…."

"Shut up!" Vinny screamed, and the smaller man shrank away from him. "The only thing you are gonna do is keep your stupid mouth shut!"

Abruptly, Vinny got out of the car and stumbled drunkenly over to the wreck. Kneeling down, he reached in through the driver's side window and felt Bo's neck for a pulse. When he could find none, he frowned, then jogged over to the passenger side to feel for Luke's.

By the time finally straightened, his whole had demeanor changed, a broad smile swept across his face. He chuckled quietly, then looked down at his friend standing unsteadily by his side.

"Come on, Marshall. We're gonna go back to the Boar's Nest and celebrate. I wanna see the looks on those people's faces when they find out the Duke boys are finally gone."

**Balladeer**: "_Now wouldn't you think that the smart thing to do would be to get out of dodge? I sure hope there's a plan B, because it looks like the Dukes done mucked-up plan A."_

_

* * *

_Back in town, Glenn shifted his feet impatiently as he stood next to the payphone.

After this he was going to seriously consider retirement. The cost of doing his job was getting to be too high. And he wasn't so sure anymore that he could live with the consequences if something went wrong – especially now.

Perhaps he'd grown too attached to the two young country boys he'd talked into doing this dirty work, but the more he thought about it, the more he feared for their safety. They were young, they were scared, and they'd been through hell. Now they were risking their very lives for the sake of justice. In Glenn's eyes, they were heroes, plain and simple.

"Okay, mister, I'm done," the young teen called as he stepped away from the payphone.

"Did you give Mr. Davenport the right directions?" Glenn demanded.

"Yessir. I told him I wrecked my parents' car up Possum Creek Road and needed it towed straight away, before they get home from out of town."

"And he agreed to do this?"

"Yessir, he did. Can I have that twenty dollars now, sir?"

Glenn hastily transferred the money to the boy, then hopped in his car and sped off, hoping that once and for all, he could put two monsters behind bars.

* * *

Bo came to slowly, as if breaking through a fog.

Head pounding, he forced his eyes open to slits, trying desperately to get his bearings.

"Wha—" he croaked, wincing at what felt like sawdust in his mouth.

Everything hurt, and he felt unnaturally lethargic, as if waking from a surgery. He tried to speak again, but this time couldn't get anything past his cottony tongue.

A female voice off to his left announced, "I think he's awake," and suddenly gentle hands poked a straw through his dry, cracked lips.

After swallowing several mouthfuls of the lukewarm water, he tried again.

"Where…am I?"

"Just take it easy, you're going to be sore after the accident."

_The accident? _

"Hos-pital?" Bo asked, his brow furrowing in confusion. _What happened?_

"Not exactly. But you're safe. That's all that matters. We're waiting for Glenn to give us further instructions about what to do with you. Until then, just rest."

_Safe? Glenn?_

Oh.

Ignoring the stabbing pains shooting behind his eyes, Bo bolted upright in bed so fast he frightened the hovering woman.

"Luke!" He shouted hoarsely, heart racing with fear. "Luke!"

"Listen, you must calm down…."

Bo roughly pushed her hands away, inching his body toward the edge of the bed.

"Where's Luke? W-where's my cousin?" He demanded, his eyes wildly searching the room to confirm that his older cousin was not, in fact, present.

"If you just relax, I'll –" The woman tried to reach for the blonde boy again, only to be shoved away a second time.

"Where's…where…?" Bo panted, the very act of sliding off the bed causing his limbs to shake with exertion and pain.

As soon as his feet hit the floor, he toppled to the side, landing in a graceless heap on the tile.

Tears of frustration filled his eyes – _where was Luke?_

"Luuke!" He bellowed one last time, desperation evident in his tone, then dropped a trembling hand over his eyes.

He jumped, startled, when the door to the room flew open with a resounding bang, and his older cousin came barreling toward him, followed by two other men.

Luke fell to his knees next to the younger boy and pulled him into a fierce embrace.

"He heard the kid screaming and we couldn't catch him before he ran over here," one of the men explained.

"It's alright, they're probably better off together," the woman replied. "Go back to your posts."

After the two men left, she waited silently by the door, careful not to intrude on the touching scene in the middle of the room.

"I'm right here, Bo," Luke choked. "I'm okay. You're okay."

Bo exhaled loudly; allowing a few tears to fall on Luke's shoulder before pulling away to wipe his arm across his eyes.

"I guess we lived, then, huh?"

Luke chuckled softly. "Yeah, I guess we did."

The woman who'd been watching over Bo snorted; then crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Neither of you should be out of bed right now."

"You," she pointed to the blonde boy, "have a concussion and enough bruises to give Muhammad Ali a run for his money."

Luke gave his cousin a concerned once-over, noting the unequal pupils inside his cousin's sky-blue irises, and his unfocused, glazed-over expression.

"You should lie down, Bo," he said with a frown.

"And you!" The woman turned to waggle her finger in Luke's face. "Have at least three cracked ribs and broken wrist."

Bo's eyes narrowed as he for the first time noticed the bandage wrapped around Luke's right hand and wrist, and the way he held his arm protectively around his torso.

"I think you're the one who needs to lie down, Lukas," Bo replied worriedly.

"I think you _both_ should lie down," the woman said, helping Bo rise to his feet so he sit on the edge of the cot. "You were lucky - incredibly lucky - to survive that crash. Your guardian angels must have been working overtime. Now, my boss will be very unhappy if anything happens to you two, so you need to stay off your feet and rest."

"I ain't leavin' him again," Luke told her in a voice that left no room for argument.

"I wouldn't ask you to," the woman replied simply, and motioned for Luke to sit in a nearby chair.

"Who are you, anyway – and where are we?"

"The name is Laura Staples, I'm a registered nurse who happens to work for the FBI."

"You're a friend of Glenn's? Where is he? What happened after we wrecked?"

"Yes, I'm a friend of Glenn's. Right now he's over at the police station, trying to get Vinny Hayes and Marshall Woodruff to confess. He arrested them for vehicular manslaughter at the Boar's Nest shortly after the accident."

"Yeah, but how long ago was that?" Luke replied, looking confused.

"Don't worry," Laura said with a smile. "Glenn seems pretty confident that this will all work out in your favor and that he can get that confession."

"What if he can't?" Bo asked quietly.

"Then he'll find another way. Glenn doesn't lose easily."

"Sounds like you're pretty fond of him," Luke observed.

Surprisingly, Laura blushed, and quickly excused herself. "If you need anything, Big Benny's just outside the door."

"Big Benny?" Bo queried as the door slid closed.

"Yeah, I passed him on my way in here. Big guy – like six-foot-five."

"Dang," commented Bo, leaning surreptitiously back against the pillows and closing his eyes.

"How're you feelin'?" Luke asked.

"Like I've been rode hard and put up wet. You?"

"I've had better days," the older boy replied honestly.

"I can't believe we made it. I blacked out when the car flipped the second time – I thought for sure that was it."

"You did good, cousin."

Bo let out a self-deprecating snort. "I almost got us killed – couldn't make myself wreck it."

"Hey, I probably couldn't have done any better. It's hard to go against instinct."

Bo sighed dismissively, wincing as another stab of pain hit behind his eyes. "Yeah…hey, I wonder how the General's doin'?"

Luke didn't get a chance to reply before the door opened to reveal Glenn Harkins…grinning like the Cheshire cat.

"I must say, it sure is a sight for sore eyes to see you two boys up and awake!"

"He's smilin', Luke," Bo said, squinting in a vain attempt to get his eyes to focus on the man in the doorway. "That's a good thing, right?"

"Well, Glenn, do you got good news for us?" Luke asked.

"Thought I'd let you hear it for yourself," Glenn replied, pulling a small voice-recorder from his pocket and bringing it over to set on the table next to Bo's bed.

His face took on a more somber expression as he hit the 'play' button, and voices filled the air.

"_I ain't done nothin'!" _Vinny's voice screamed angrily.

Out of the corner of his eye, Luke watched Bo suppress a shiver.

"_Vinny, you and I both know that simply isn't true. We found the list of names in your trailer – the common denominator linking each of their deaths is you!"_

"_You can't prove that!"_

"_Vinny, there's nothing to prove,"_ Glenn's voice replied, sounding ever-smooth and confident. _"You'd be surprised at the things I know."_

"_You don't know shit! You're keepin' me here without doin' process!"_

"_It's 'due process', Vinny. A concept you're going to become more and more acquainted with."_

"_I want a lawyer."_

"_Good. I want you to have a lawyer. You're gonna need one. I'm just trying to help you help yourself, before things start to get ugly."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_What, you think a handwriting expert isn't going to be able to figure out that it's you who wrote that list? You don't think we can get together enough evidence to link you to the scenes of those deaths? You're already facing an illegal weapons charge, and now vehicular homicide."_

"_No! I told you I was at the Boar's Nest!"_

"_That's funny, because I got one eye-witness saying that you left the Boar's Nest this morning around four a.m., and didn't return until 8 a.m. She said she noticed orange paint flecks smeared into the dents along the front end of your car. There's only one orange car in this county, Vinny, and it belongs to the Duke boys."_

"_It was an accident—"_

"_Oh, so you _were_ there! See, now this is more helpful."_

"_If it was an accident, then I'm innocent."_

"_You mean, if a _jury_ thinks it was an accident. You really think a jury is going to think you 'accidentally' drove the Duke boys into a ditch after they hear how much you've hated them? Or about the fight in the Boar's Nest earlier this week? Hm? What are my forensics people going to tell me when they investigate the scene of the accident? They're real good, Vinny."_

"_What do you want from me?"_

"_I want to make a deal. It's in your best interest to cooperate, since I'm not too sure how long Marshall can go before he starts ratting you out. After that, all bets are off. So I'll give it to you straight: I'll drop the vehicular homicide and the weapons charge, if you tell me about the deaths on this list."_

"_Yeah right! That ain't even fair!"_

"_You've already won, Vinny. Haven't you? The Duke boys are dead…Tommy Rodgers is dead, and I'm sure Dalton Price would be willing to testify, by the way…."_

"_How do you know about that?"_

"_I told you, Vinny. The best thing for you to do is cooperate. We already have a solid case against you. If you plead guilty, you'll get a lesser sentence. If you plead not-guilty, and they find otherwise, it's the electric chair."_

Silence.

"_Vinny – you were angry, right? You're still angry. Either way you look at this, you're going to jail for a long time. Don't you want people to know why?"_

Bo flinched at the unmistakable sound of a pad of paper slapping against the top of a desk, then Glenn turned off the tape recording.

"He wrote out a full confession a few minutes later," he said tiredly.

"You did it, boys."

It took a minute for reality to set it, and then Bo let out as loud a rebel yell as his aching head would allow. Luke just sank bonelessly into his chair, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. They did it.

It was finally over.

* * *

It was late when Glenn finally pulled in front of the Duke residence.

Bo and Luke had been distraught when they found out their cousin and Uncle Jesse believed them to be dead. A deep sense of guilt fell upon them, like a black cloud.

Glenn had insisted on coming with them, to help explain things. Even more so, he wanted the boys' family to know that he considered them heroes of the highest caliber.

"Well, here goes nothin'," Bo commented as he and Luke trudged wearily up the porch steps. Glenn followed closely behind.

"Should we knock, or go straight in?" Luke wondered aloud. What was proper etiquette in these kinds of situations?

"Maybe I should go first," Glenn offered bravely.

"No, Glenn – just wait out here," Luke said finally, reaching for the screen door handle.

He and Bo walked into the house, just like they had a million times before, stepping discreetly into the kitchen where Uncle Jesse stood, his back toward them.

The Duke boys eyed each other nervously, not sure how to go about getting their Uncle's attention. Silently, they communicated, then made a unanimous decision.

"Uh…hey, Uncle Jesse," Bo quietly called.

The older man gasped and whirled around, bracing his arms against the kitchen counter.

"Alright, Jesse – just take it easy," Luke cautioned worriedly.

The patriarch of the Duke family just stared, wide-eyed and blinking repeatedly in disbelief.

The trance was broken by the familiar lilt of a female's voice, as Daisy entered the kitchen.

"Hey, Uncle Jesse – Oh!" Daisy let out a shriek, startling both Duke boys, then stopped in her tracks and covered her mouth with both hands.

"Daisy," Uncle Jesse began, his voice low and unsure. "You might wanna call Doc Petticord. I think I'm having…visions."

"No, Uncle Jesse, I see them too," Daisy cried, her eyes filling with tears.

"It really is us," Luke insisted. "We can explain everything. Just – sit down, Uncle Jesse, please? You look like you're gonna fall over."

The older man ignored Luke, instead walking over to them slowly. He reached out his right hand to grab hold of Bo's arm, lifting his left hand up to cup Luke's cheek in his calloused palm.

"Bo…Luke…are you real?"

"'Course we're real, Uncle Jesse," Bo whispered emotionally.

As if to prove it, he suddenly pulled the older man into a tight embrace, surprised when he felt his Uncle's strong, broad shoulders shake with silent sobs.

Daisy walked over to Luke and tentatively leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his torso and pressing her ear to his chest.

As she listened to the loud, steady beat of his heart, she began cry in earnest.

"Shhh…s'okay, darlin'."

"I don't understand," she whispered through her tears. "How…how are you here?"

"It's a long story," Luke said, reaching to hug his Uncle as Daisy pulled away to embrace Bo.

"We're real sorry you guys thought we were dead," Bo said, his eyes sorrow-filled at the obvious pain and suffering their family had endured.

A knock at the door interrupted their reunion, and Luke let Glenn in from the porch.

"Uncle Jesse, Daisy – this is Glenn Harkins, FBI. How about we go out in the living room where it's more comfortable. Bo and I got a lot of explainin' to do."

**Balladeer**: _"He can say that again. The boys told Uncle Jesse and Daisy everything they'd been up to the past few days, and Glenn shook Jesse's hand and thanked him for raisin' such good boys. He said Bo and Luke might get a commendation for their work in catching Vinny Hayes. If I were the Duke boys, I wouldn't want a commendation, I'd just want a good night's sleep."_

_

* * *

_Epilogue:

Jesse had given the Good Lord all the credit for the boys' safe return. To him, it was nothing short of a miracle. It would be a long time though, before he would willingly let them out of his sight.

And maybe, it truly was a miracle - they don't talk about it, but neither Bo nor Luke can fathom how they'd survived such a crash, much less come out of it with only minor injuries. The General had been totaled beyond repair - a fact that shook each boy to his core. That car had been their pride and joy - the General had been unstoppable.

Now they're back to square one, saving up money to buy a car. It's not such a bad place to be, after everything they've been through.

For now, they're just concentrating on healing, physically and emotionally. It's a slow process, but they've got each other.

_They realize that all they really need in order to heal is the texture of the dust from old dirt roads, the sound of the siren on Roscoe's squad car, the taste of a cold beer at the Boar's Nest, the smell of sweat after a long hard day working the fields, the warmth of Daisy's smile, and the tender wisdom in Uncle Jesse's eyes._

This is home, and this is where they plan to stay._  
_

It's late, about a week after their brush with death, and both boys lie awake in the dark of their shared bedroom.

"Luke…you asleep?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I don't know…guess my mind is still wound-up."

"Yeah, I know. I keep thinkin' 'bout Lisa."

Luke opens his eyes to the darkness of the room. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. Luke? Do you think I'll ever be able to stop thinkin' 'bout her?"

Luke sighs. "Do you want to?"

"Yeah. No…I don't know. I wanna remember; I just don't want to hurt."

"It's bound to hurt for awhile, Bo. There's nothin' wrong with that."

"I thought we had somethin', Luke. I thought she…."

"She was sick, Bo. There's nothin' you could've done."

"I know…I just…sometimes I just need to talk about it, you know?"

"You can talk to me anytime. Or you can talk to Uncle Jesse."

"Yeah, I know. I will."

"I'm real proud of you, cousin. You know that?"

Luke can almost hear Bo smiling in the dark.

"Thanks, Luke. G'night."

"'Night, Bo."

Minutes later, both boys are fast asleep.

**El fin.**

**

* * *

A/N:** Ah! I can't believe it's done! I hope the ending was satisfactory, after all this time. Feel free to review and let me know how I did!

"_After awhile you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul._

_And you learn that love doesn't mean security._

_And you begin to learn that kisses aren't contracts, and presents aren't promises._

_And you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes open._

_With the __grace__ of maturity, not the grief of a child._

_And you learn to build all your roads on today, because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain for plans. And futures have a way of __falling__ down in mid-flight._

_After awhile you learn that even sunshine burns if you get too much._

_So you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers. And you learn that you really can endure...that you really are strong and that you really do have worth._

_And you learn and learn and learn..._

_With every goodbye you learn."_

_-Veronica A. Shoffstall_


End file.
